Traffic came to a standstill on arterial roads for over two hours on Thursday morning as rains lashed Chennai and suburbs. Of the two cm rainfall recorded in the city during the 12-hour ending 8.30 p.m., a major volume was received in the couple of hours.
The thundershowers, which began around 11 a.m., left many roads, including Gandhi Irwin Road, Velachery Main Road, Vandikaran Street in Adambakkam, Poonamallee High Road, Purasawalkam High Road, Perambur High Road and New Avadi Road flooded within half an hour. N. Dinakar of Purasawalkam said, “I was proceeding to Egmore when it started raining. The thunders were quite loud and with the visibility low and the road conditions poor, many people like me took shelter under bus stops and in buildings.”
The patchwork on the damaged portions of the roads such as TTK Road posed problems for motorists. Around 11.30 a.m., the rear wheel of a mini-van in Alwarpet got stuck in a pothole filled with concrete mix by the Chennai Corporation. It was a long wait for several vehicles, including an MTC bus, on route number 5C, on the road below the flyover till the mini-van was removed.
In another rain-related incident on Cathedral Garden Road, the civic body officials were called to remove the huge branches of a protruding tree that had fallen on the road blocking movement of vehicles. The officials said the tree, which was uprooted, had to be removed. Residents of Pasha Manzil, however, were upset that the tree was removed in an unscientific manner. It also broke the grilled enclosure of the compound wall of the apartment complex and even disrupted power supply, the residents complained.
There were also complaints of water-logging from different parts of the city. Residents of Vyasarpadi said several areas remain water-logged as the stormwater drains are choked. P. Ramesh, a resident of Satyamurthy Nagar, said localities such as Mallipoo Nagar and Samandhipoo Nagar are flooded with water overflowing from the SWD. “I spend nearly one hour to cross two km stretch on the damaged, water-logged Erukancheri High Road,” he added.
For residents living in the by lanes of Periapalayathamman Koil Main Street, Moolakothalam, sewage blocks and overflow is an added woe apart from inundation.
The situation is no different in suburbs such as Ayapakkam and Ayanambakkam, near Ambattur, where residents had to endure stagnation of sewage mixed rainwater. They said it has been a week and the situation remains unchanged.
The Meteorological Department attributed the rainfall to a trough of low pressure extending from southwest bay to west central bay off Tamil Nadu Coast. A seasonal trough over Tamil Nadu region also caused the rainfall.
Y.E.A.Raj, Deputy Director General of Meteorology, Chennai, said the rain spell has lasted for 11 days. Usually, such spells during monsoon are for only five days. While the observatory in Meenambakkam recorded one cm rainfall, the facilities in Ennore and Madhavaram received 2 cm and 1 cm respectively.
Officials said there may be a gradual decrease in rainfall from Saturday and many places of the State, including Chennai, may have relatively dry weather from Monday. The department forecasts a few spells of rain or thundershower on Friday.
PWD Minister K.V. Ramalingam has instructed officials to keep river mouths clear of sand deposits to ensure free flow of rainwater.
A press release from Chennai Corporation said that following the instruction the civic body would take up the work in the Cooum, Adyar and Kosasthalaiyar rivers on Friday. Measures would also be initiated to repair the bridge connecting Srinivasapuram and MRC Nagar and desilt the canal below the flyover in Pallikaranai to prevent flooding in Velachery and Madipakkam.
