The sudden downpour, that lashed the city and its suburbs on Saturday, made life miserable for many and it almost halted city traffic for nearly three hours. Police and motorists had to wait for the flood water to recede to be able to see the roads.
Though the rain and water-logging has now become part of Coimbatore city life for the last 10 days, it only proved that the city lacked the infrastructure to withstand even an hour's rain.
Canals that were encroached upon, waterways that were clogged with garbage and debris and storm water drains and open drainages blocked by plastics waste, resulted in the city almost getting inundated.
With the rain water gushing out from the waterways and drainages, the city literally stinks the very next day, pointed out R. Raveendran of Residents Awareness Association of Coimbatore.
He urged the Corporation to press into service earthmovers and clear the waterways on a war footing.
Saturday night's rain caused a nightmare for residents with water flooding the Kikkani underpass, besides the Women's Polytechnic Junction, Lakshmi Mills Junction, Nanjundapuram Road and many other pockets of the city.
Flooding of the Sanganur canal and water-logging on Avanashi Road near Nava India held up traffic on the busy Avanashi Road for nearly two hours.
Traffic on Trichy Road, Sathyamangalam Road, Mettupalayam Road, and sub-roads in the city and commercial areas came to a standstill with knee-deep water on roads making it difficult even for heavy vehicles to move on.
Breakdown of many vehicles on the arterial roads also added to the traffic congestion. This forced the traffic police personnel to switch off the automatic signals and manually regulate the traffic.
Motorists were also forced to take alternative routes as many subways were flooded. The potholes on roads also tested the harried motorists.
A motorist P. Kumar, who got stuck on Avanashi Road, said that with monsoon setting, the poor maintenance of drainage system was worsening the situation everyday.
He was also unhappy over the civic body's poor planning of roads and drainage systems which made life difficult for road users.
