Overnight rains mark northeast monsoon's arrival in Tamil Nadu

Thunderstorms through Wednesday night that continued on Thursday morning marked the arrival of the northeast Monsoon in Tamil Nadu in and around this metropolis, whose roads and low-lying areas witnessed waterlogging.

Data released by the Tamil Nadu State Disaster Management Authority (TNSDMA) said the city received an average rainfall of 97.27 mm till 8 am on Thursday morning. Mylapore, one of the upscale areas in the city, received maximum rainfall recording 178 mm, while Purasawakkam recorded 94.40 mm, Ambathur (90 mm), and Ayanavaram recording 53 mm, the lowest.

Residents of the city woke up to waterlogged streets as the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) warned that the rains would continue till 10 am. As nearly 100 mm of rains lashed the city, motorists found it difficult to navigate through waterlogged roads as several railway sub-ways in the city were flooded.

The thunderstorms began at 3 am on Thursday and continued till about 6 am in various parts of the city, though the rains continued till the time of writing. Waterlogging was reported from various parts of the city with people posting pictures on Twitter and other social media platforms.

“More rain bands converging from NE, the super-duper rains in Chennai will continue for a while. Nungambakkam is heading for 100 mm now. Very Very intense rains lashing Nungambakkam & core city now. The initial thunders have completely reduced now,” Pradeep John, an independent weather blogger, posted on Twitter.

Chennai receives nearly 63 per cent (867.4mm) and Tamil Nadu 48 per cent (438 mm) of their annual rainfall from northeast Monsoon.