Parts of Chennai inundated due to overnight rains, despite officials working through the night to drain out water

CHENNAI: Several parts of the city were inundated due to heavy overnight rains. With the incessant rains on Thursday, the city woke up to waterlogging in several streets. Despite corporation officials working through the night to drain out water, there continues to be water damage in roads and houses. 

Continuous rains crippled normal life in the Madipakkam area. All major lanes and bylanes in the areas remained waterlogged due to which commuters had a harrowing time. Vacant land patches in the locality worsened the situation as the water was overflowing on the road. Kuberan street and Ram Nagar are flooded as well.

In Korattur, the northern parts are flooded and water has entered into the houses there. The East Avenue road has been partially closed due to waterlogging. 

Residents of the AGS colony in Velachery said that water levels on the streets have surpassed the levels they had marked in the last four years. Despite corporation staff pumping out water, the ground floors of all houses in the areas are flooded. 

“We did not expect the continuous rains although there was a warning. Four pumps including a 75HP and 50 HP are in use continuously to drain water,” said Geetha Ganesh, secretary of AGS colony residents welfare association. 

Parts of Broadway, Padur, Jawahar Nagar in Kolathur were inundated. The Double tank area in KK Nagar had residents wading in knee-deep water. Residents of Jawahar Nagar in Kolathur said the water levels kept increasing.

"I live in the fifth floor of our apartment complex. The entire street is full of water and we could not step out of the house. We have mosquitos all through the day,' says Abdul Hameed, a resident of Soundarajan Street in T Nagar.

Many parts of Chinmaya Nagar, Saligramam were inundated due to heavy rains which continued from Wednesday night. In some areas, the water was knee-deep. Many localities blacked out from 4.30 am while some experienced power cuts around 8 am as winds along with intermittent rains pounded the city. While supermarkets functioned, many shops were shut. The only crowd could be seen in front of tea shops whose business was thriving. In the Koyambedu market, the roads have been inundated with many vendors trying to sell lemon, coriander and curry leaves under a umbrella. The road linking Saligramam with Kaliamman Street has been barricaded as water has reached around waist high.

"Frequent power cuts have already affected my work and I have taken three days leave. Meanwhile, the water from our street drained completely and left a huge pile of garbage on the street and inside few houses," said G Sabapathy, a resident of Avvai Nagar in Thoraipakkam. 

The scene was similar in North Chennai too. Residential areas near Captain Cotton Canal were inundated and rainwater entered into houses. Krishnamoorthy Nagar, Ambedkar Nagar, Kannadasa Nagar are affected.

Water discharge from the city's reservoirs has been increased. The discharge from Puzhal eri has been increased from 2000 cusecs to 3000 cusecs at 7 am on Thursday considering inflows and the rain forecast. 

Meanwhile, despite adverse weather conditions, flight operations continued at Chennai Airport in the morning.