The residents of Tiruchi heaved a sigh of relief after rains with gusty winds lashed the city on Saturday evening. Tiruchi Airport recorded a rainfall of 18.4 mm till midnight on Saturday night.
What started as a drizzle later turned into a downpour. The sudden downpour brought down the temperature in the city which had been hovering around 40 degrees Celsius in the afternoon.
Traffic across the city was affected by the flooding of roads. The drivers had to navigate through traffic jams at a snail’s pace. The traffic at the Tiruchi bypass was affected for sometime. Lorries came to halt in the main carriageway causing a gridlock of sorts.
The low-lying areas around Gandhi Market and Singarathope were flooded in the city. The island of Srirangam remained unaffected by the downpour. The gusty winds uprooted a tree in the Kalaiarangam premises on McDonalds Road. Town buses and intercity buses coming out of the central bus stand were diverted via Rockins Road and Williams Road. Following the downpour with lightning and thunder, the TANGEDCO severed power supply across the town as a precautionary measure. Owing to the power cut, traffic at arterial junctions was thrown out of gear.
According to weathermen, the city has been recording a high temperature for the past week because of the ‘dog-star’ phenomenon.
On Friday evening, some parts of the city witnessed mild drizzle.
Pudukottai: Parts of Pudukottai district experienced moderate showers accompanied by strong winds on Saturday bringing respite to residents who have been reeling under severe heat for the past couple of months.