Cyclone Nivar Live Updates: Cyclone Crosses Near Puducherry Coast, Weakens Into ‘Severe’ Storm

Cyclone Nivar Latest News: Severe cyclonic storm ‘Cyclone Nivar’ in the final hours of Wednesday made landfall about 30 km north of Puducherry coast, bringing gusty winds of 100-110 kmph and heavy rainfall across parts of Tamil Nadu. The cyclone, briefly weakened, is expected to weaken in the next three hours as it crosses the Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coast, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) stated.

There have been no reports of loss of life so far due to the cyclone which uprooted trees in several areas. Incidents of wall collapse were also reported from some parts of Tamil Nadu, state Revenue Minister R B Udhayakumar said. Relief authorities have evacuated more than one lakh people from the coastal areas of the union territory and neighbouring Tamil Nadu, and housed them in shelters.

The authorities also disconnected power supply in the vulnerable areas as a precautionary measure.

Earlier, the IMD had said Nivar would cross the coast near Puducherry with a wind speed of 120-130 kmph, gusting up to 145 kmph but it weakened on Wednesday night. However, Deputy Director-General of Meteorology, Chennai, S Balachandran said that rainfall is likely to continue in Tamil Nadu.

Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu recorded the highest rainfall at 24.6 cm, followed by 23.7 cm in Puducherry from 8.30 PM on Wednesday till 2.30 am on Thursday. Nagapattinam recorded 6.3 cm rainfall, Karaikal 8.6 cm and Chennai 8.9 cm during the same period.

Cyclone Nivar returned with strong winds in some localities close to the city and the suburban shoreline. The approach roads to the Marina beach, off the arterial Kamaraj Salai, were flooded and sheets of water reached close to the main road where the city’s fishermen had securely tied up their boats.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), aside from the state disaster response force, has earmarked a total of 50 teams – with 30 being deployed on the ground on the coasts of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Andhra Pradesh. At least 20 more teams have been kept on standby at Vijaywada (Andhra Pradesh), Cuttack (Odisha) and Thrissur (Kerala) in case the storm strengthens further.