Updated: November 24, 2020 5:38:36 pm
According to the Indian Meteorological Department, it is highly likely that it will rain in most places in Tamil Nadu, Puduchery and Karaikal, with heavy to very heavy rains in some places and extremely heavy rains in isolated locations on Wednesday. (Express Photography: Janardhan Koushik)
Even when Cyclone Nivar was far off the coast of Tamil Nadu, the capital Chennai witnessed heavy rains on Tuesday. According to the observation of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), the cyclone is likely to move towards the coast of Tamil Nadu, near Puducherry, around 5pm on Wednesday.
The Tamil Nadu government has announced a public holiday on Wednesday. Except for essential services, all government offices throughout the state will be closed. Some Madras HC banks decided to finish the proceedings before 4pm on Tuesday so that the court employees could come home.
The depression over the Bay of Bengal that escalated into a deep depression on Monday intensified into a cyclonic weather system on Tuesday.
An IMD update Tuesday night read: “This is likely to be a very severe cyclonic storm with a wind speed of 120-130 kmph with gusts of 145 kmph. The cyclone is likely to cross the shores of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry between Karaikkal and Mamallapuram around Puducherry late Wednesday afternoon. “
Even when the weather situation was far from Chennai on Tuesday, various parts of the state, including Chennai, Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur and Chengalpet districts, received heavy to very heavy rains on Tuesday morning.
Follow live updates from Cyclone Nivar
As of Tuesday afternoon, according to IMD, the cyclone was 450 km southwest of Chennai and moving northwest. The meteorological agency added that the storm surge of about two meters above sea level is likely to reach the moment of making landfall, causing flooding of low-lying areas.
The cyclonic storm is forecast to move towards the Tamil Nadu coast, crossing closer to Puducherry, around 5 p.m. Wednesday. And the rains in the state are likely to continue through Friday.
Considering the weather situation, several train services from Chennai, including almost all those heading to the southern districts, were completely canceled on November 25, 2020.
Suburban train services in Chennai will not be operational from 10 a.m. on Wednesday.
As the urban neighborhoods of Puducherry, Chennai, and neighboring busy districts are almost certain to face the heat of Cyclone Nivar, a magisterial order has been issued in Puducherry imposing Section 144 from Tuesday 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. Thursday. in the morning. throughout Puducherry.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) sent 30 teams to launch rescue and relief operations.
All private bus services were ordered to stop operating in six districts of Tamil Nadu, including Chengalpattu, Villupuram, Thanjavur, Nagapattinam, Thiruvarur and Cuddalore as of Tuesday afternoon.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and Puducherry CM V Narayanasamy about the situation and secured all possible support from the Center. “I pray for the safety and well-being of those living in the affected areas,” Prime Minister Modi tweeted.
See photos | As rain hits Tamil Nadu, state braces for cyclone Nivar
All trains to the southern districts have been canceled due to heavy rains and winds prior to the
Health Minister C Vijayabaskar said that additional manpower has been deployed and vehicles have been placed near government hospitals and police stations to avoid problems stemming from power outages and disruption of telecommunications facilities. He said that 465 ambulances are ready for operations in the Nagapattinam, Cuddalore, Pudukottai, Tiruvarur, Thanjavur and Chengalpattu regions, in addition to coordinating the fire and police department for emergency situations.
A 24-hour emergency center has been established in the state to send government alerts via SMS and WhatsApp (044-28888105 or 7338895011).
The Indian Navy and Coast Guard are also ready to deploy flood relief teams in Chennai, Puducherry, as well as Nagapattinam and Ramanathapuram.
The coast guard alone has prepared 15 disaster relief teams to assist state and district administrations and has deployed four patrol boats offshore to assist fishermen and merchant vessels. There are also two helicopters on standby.
The Madras Atomic Power Station (MAPS) near Chennai has activated the cyclone protection mechanism and a high alert has been sent to monitor the weather bulletins. The MAPS also took precautions such as placing sandbags on the coastal side and carried out the inspection of the buildings and structures of the plant, since Unit II of the establishment is operational at its total capacity of 220 MW.
© The Indian Express (P) Ltd
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