Cyclone Warning Issued for Seven Ports in Tamil Nadu; Anticipated Rain and Strong Winds

Chennai, Dec 23 (NationPress) The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) has announced a third-level cyclone warning for seven ports in Tamil Nadu: Chennai, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Ennore, Kattupalli, Puducherry, and Karaikal.

This alert is prompted by a low-pressure system situated over the central western Bay of Bengal, which has downgraded into a depression.

The weather agency forecasts rain accompanied by strong winds on December 24 and 25 as the system progresses west-southwest towards the southwest Bay of Bengal, near the coastlines of north Tamil Nadu and south Andhra Pradesh.

Previously, Cyclone Fengal impacted Tamil Nadu and Puducherry from November 29 to December 1, causing extensive devastation.

The cyclone resulted in 12 fatalities and flooded 2,11,139 hectares of farmland, leading to substantial losses for farmers.

In addition, Cyclone Fengal inflicted severe infrastructural damage, affecting 1,649 kilometers of electrical lines, 23,664 electric poles, 997 transformers, 9,576 kilometers of roadways, 1,847 culverts, and 417 water tanks.

According to the Tamil Nadu government, 69 lakh families and 1.5 crore individuals faced adverse effects.

In the aftermath, Chief Minister M. K. Stalin sought Rs 2,000 crore in interim assistance from the National Disaster Response Fund.

An initial evaluation of the damage pegged losses at Rs 2,475 crore for relief and reconstruction.

The central government has allocated Rs 944 crore as temporary aid.

Ongoing northeast monsoon conditions have led to heavy rainfall across Tamil Nadu, with a 14 percent increase in precipitation this season.

The state recorded 447 mm of rainfall, surpassing the average of 393 mm. Notably, Chennai experienced 845 mm of rainfall (16 percent above average), while Coimbatore noted a 47 percent rise.

The Tamil Nadu Water Resources Department (WRD) reported that reservoirs throughout the state are nearing full capacity. Twelve reservoirs (3 in Coimbatore, 7 in Madurai, and 2 in Chennai) are at 100 percent capacity, 18 reservoirs have surpassed 90 percent, and 23 reservoirs maintain water levels between 70 percent and 80 percent.

The Stanley Reservoir at Mettur, the largest in Tamil Nadu, is at 97.51 percent capacity, containing 91.146 TMC out of a total of 93.470 TMC.

The dam recorded an inflow of 7,368 cusecs and released 1,300 cusecs downstream as of Tuesday.

Additionally, the Sathanur Reservoir stands at 117 feet, just below its full reservoir level (FRL) of 119 feet.

The overall water storage across Tamil Nadu’s reservoirs is at 195.455 TMC, which is 24.824 TMC short of total capacity.