Cyclone Ditwah brings red alert and heavy rain to Chennai

Large parts of northern Tamil Nadu remained on high alert on Tuesday as heavy rain bands linked to the remnants of Cyclone Ditwah hovered close to the coast, bringing intense downpours, flooding and severe disruption to daily life.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert for Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram and Chengalpattu, warning of heavy spells exceeding 15mm per hour, accompanied by thunderstorms and winds of 40–60 kmph.

The deep depression, located less than 50km east of Chennai for several hours, has been drifting slowly southwestward. According to the IMD, the system — once Cyclone Ditwah — has weakened but continues to maintain its intensity as a depression. At 5.30am, it was centred over the southwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining west-central Bay of Bengal close to the north Tamil Nadu–Puducherry coast, only about 25–35 km from land.

Meteorologists expect it to weaken further into a well-marked low pressure area after it moves closer to the coastline over the next 12 hours.

Heavy rain in Chennai

The proximity of the depression brought unrelenting rain to the Chennai region through the morning. Several arterial roads were submerged, neighbourhoods were waterlogged, and slow-moving traffic clogged major junctions. Vehicles crawled through knee-deep water in many parts of the city as public movement slowed to a near standstill. Authorities urged residents to stay indoors unless necessary and to avoid flood-prone stretches.

Holiday for schools, colleges

With intense rainfall predicted, district administrations in Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram and Chengalpattu declared a holiday for all schools and colleges. Chennai District Collector Roshni Siddharth Jagade confirmed that the measure was taken as a precaution to ensure student safety amid the possibility of worsening waterlogging. Madras University and Anna University also postponed semester examinations scheduled for Tuesday. Revised dates will be announced later.

Damage to farms

Meanwhile, the impact of the cyclone’s strong winds has been felt beyond the capital. In Mayiladuthurai district, banana farmers reported extensive damage after gusty winds flattened nearly 1,500 trees in Aaru Paadhi village of Tharangambadi taluk. Officials said 37.1 hectares of banana cultivation — out of an average 511 hectares cultivated annually in the district — had been inundated by rain and storm-related flooding.

Mayilswami, a local farmer, said nearly 300 of his banana trees were uprooted just as the crop was being prepared for the Karthigai Deepam festive season. “Most of the trees were ready for harvest. I’ve suffered losses of more than 100,000 rupees,” he said. “This kind of severe weather hits us every two years. Farmers are struggling to recover. We request the government to give fair and timely compensation.”

A senior horticulture department official said assessment teams were visiting affected fields and that compensation would be provided where more than 33 per cent of the crop had been damaged.

Three people have died in rain-related incidents linked to Cyclone Ditwah in Tamil Nadu, state Disaster Management Minister KKSSR Ramachandran confirmed. Across the region, rainfall activity is expected to continue until December 5 in parts of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal, with isolated heavy spells likely in pockets of Chennai and its neighbouring districts.

- with inputs from IANS, ANI