Tamil Nadu floods: MeT predicts seven more days of rains, Chennai airport shut till Sunday
The unprecedented rains, the worst in 100 years, have battered Tamil Naidu's northern districts such as Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kanchipuram and Cuddalore. In the last spell of rains, around 180 people had died in the four districts. According to a joint statement by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and Skymet, a private weather forecasting agency, Tamil Naidu's weather is under observation for the next 72 hours as the rain in the next 48 hours is going to be comparatively heavy.
Submerged Chennai braces itself for three more days of downpour.
The Indian Railways has cancelled as many as 23 trains due incessant rains in Chennai.
The Indian Railways has cancelled as many as 23 trains due incessant rains in Chennai. https://t.co/d74SrBqcfT pic.twitter.com/J30CxtFEaJ
— Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) December 3, 2015
All train operations Central to Gudur are suspended till water level recedes in Central/BBQ.
— Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) December 2, 2015
Train operations from & 2 ChennaiCentral & MMC suspended as water level increasing @ all lines elephant bridge due to Cooum backflow. 1/2
— DRM Chennai (@DrmChennai) December 2, 2015
Railway Security Helpline no. 182 at your service 24X7!! https://t.co/TX0LHsi6W4
— COM NR (@comnrly) December 2, 2015
The Chennai Corporation has announced Emergency Contact Numbers for all the regional zones in the city. People can contact the following numbers in case of any emergency due to the floods.
Emergency Toll Free Number: 1910, State Emergency: 1070, District Emergency: 1077, Electricity:1912, Fire & Rescue: 101, Ambulance: 108, Tree fall, waterlogging - 1913, Sewage overflow - 45674567, 22200335
Helpline Numbers: Tiruvottiyur : 09445190001, Manali: 09445190002; Madhavaram: 9445190003, Ambattur: 9445190007; Tondiarpet: 9445190004, Royapuram: 9445190005; Annanagar: 9445190008, Teynampet: 9445190009, Alandur: 9445190012, Adyar: 9445190013,Perungudi: 9445190014
Flood Control Room: 28593990, 044-28410577,9445869843/47
The Centre has released Rs 900 crore to TN for "flood relief". Tamil Nadu says Rs 500 crore of this is pending because of the "unfair devolution" by 14th Finance Commission, the rest has been pending for a year.
Several private establishments declared a holiday earlier today. The government issued an advisory to private sector undertakings to allow their employees to take leave or permit them to work from home on Thursday and Friday.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa will undertake an aerial survey of flood-hit Chennai, Kanchipuram and Tiruvallur districts. Chennai has been declared a disaster zone.
May God look after all our brothers & sisters in Chennai. Nature’s fury is strong may we all have the strength to fight it. Insha Allah
— Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) December 2, 2015
T 2078 - Prayers and appeals to the Almighty for respite .. in CHENNAI !! pic.twitter.com/mRXrWlktTn
— Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) December 2, 2015
Chennai corporation chief says over 62, 000 people have been evacuated and shifted to safe places. The Indian Coast Guard shiftes over 150 marooned people in Chennai. Over 1,000 people stranded at different locations have been provided with food cooked on board Coast Guard ships.
Also Read: Rains, floods devastate Chennai, city turns into an island; major financial loss estimated
Tambaram railway station turned into a makeshift shelter for stranded passengers #ChennaiFloods pic.twitter.com/a1ikbrYYCU
— ANI (@ANI_news) December 2, 2015
Superstar Rajinikanth extends his support to the rain-affected victims of Tamil Nadu, donates Rs 10 lakh to the Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund.
Southern Rly bulletin --- pic.twitter.com/dHor3g7uaC
— Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) December 2, 2015
National Carrier Air India carried out a test landing at Arakkonam Naval Base off the Chennai airport, says an official statement. AI A320 Aircraft VT-EXA took off from Hyderabad and landed at MAA Arakkonam NAVAL Base at 2037 IST on Wednesday. The flight made a safe and successful landing.
"We are hopeful of passenger flights landing there from tomorrow," says Defence Ministry sources, as per PTI. Airports Authority of India has decided to keep the Chennai airport closed till December 6 due to the flooding of the operational and the surrounding area. No flight has taken off from or landed at the Chennai airport since 8.00 pm yesterday. In the run up to the possible new arrangement, national carrier Air India landed an Airbus A320 carrying passengers from Hyderabad at the Rajali naval air station at Arakkonam at 2047 hours earlier today. Naval air station in Arakonnam may become the temporary airport.
The national weather office predicts three more days of torrential downpours in the southern state of nearly 70 million people.
"There will be no respite," says Laxman Singh Rathore of the India Meteorological Department, as per news agency Reuters.
No deaths were reported in the latest floods, but since heavy rain set in on November 12 there have been 150 deaths in Tamil Nadu. More than 200 people were critically injured over the past 24 hours in Chennai, a senior home ministry official said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has blamed climate change for the deluge, injecting urgency into the debate at global climate talks in Paris and highlighting the vulnerability of tropical nations like India to extreme weather.
