Dark clouds loom over the skies of Chennai.
Though Chennai recorded 14% excess rainfall in Oct, it has escaped major flooding so far. The civic body desilted 1,670km of stormwater drains and 81km of canals, besides pruning 78,161 trees.
Tonight, we are preparing for another heavy spell of rain and possibly strong winds in north Chennai,” GCC commissioner G S Sameeran said. Corporation workers managed to pump out water at affected places by Monday morning. But meteorologists say the most challenging phase is yet to come. Its drainage network is designed to handle rainfall of up to 70mm an hour. “These are the first spells in this monsoon. We must be more vigilant as it advances, since heavy downpour in a short span has been the pattern.
Even when the outer rain bands of severe cyclonic storm Murasu brought intermittent heavy rain on Sunday, the spells didn’t trigger widespread waterlogging.
V R Durai, director of the Area Cyclone Warning Centre at RMC Chennai, said easterly waves — elongated low-pressure areas moving east to west — could bring widespread moderate to heavy rain from Nov 7.
So, there is a chance for Nov to end with excess rainfall,” he said. IMD director general Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said three of the four or five cyclones affecting India annually typically form during the northeast monsoon. But the prediction of such weather systems will not be accurate in the long-range forecast bulletin and seasonal forecasts we issue at the beginning of a monsoon season or every month,” he said.
But the city’s peak rainfall activity is still ahead. Nov is Chennai’s wettest month, averaging about 37cm. Though the IMD ’s long-range forecast indicates below-normal rainfall in Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, individual weather systems remain difficult to predict. “There are chances for weather systems to develop one after another in the second half of Nov and Dec as the sea surface is warm. Usually, systems that develop at the end of Nov and early Dec move towards Chennai. “So one cyclone or depression can bring excess rain. It could bring the entire season’s rainfall. You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Chennai | Silver Rate in Chennai | Bank Holidays in Chennai | Public Holidays in Chennai | Chennai AQI | Weather in Chennai | Petrol Price in Chennai | Diesel Price in Chennai | CNG Price in Chennai | LPG Price in Chennai