Chennai rains: Death toll rises to 12 in city, residents wary of more showers

Heavy rains lashing Chennai has reportedly claimed the lives of at least 12 persons in the city till now.

Among them was a 70-year-old person whose body was found floating near Marina on Friday, The Times of India reported. It is suspected that he fell off from a pushcart he used to sleep on and must have drowned.

Another man, who has been identified as Mukesh and who hailed from Uttar Pradesh, was found dead in Periamedu.

On Thursday, seven rain-related deaths were reported in the city, taking the toll to 12, the report adds.

On November 1, two young girls were killed by electrocution after they stepped on a live wire that had fallen out from a junction box on a waterlogged street in Kodungaiyur in Chennai. The Madras High Court on Friday ordered payment of Rs 10 lakh each to the families of the deceased girls.

People walk through a flooded area of Marina Beach after heavy rains in Chennai on Friday. PTI Photo by R Senthil Kumar.

An IANS report quotes official sources stating that the number of rain-related deaths in the Tamil Nadu has risen to 14 so far.

Sivakumar B reports for The Times of India that the city, which is experiencing the Northeast Monsoon which started on October 27, has by Friday received 74% of rains in a short span of time.

Rains bring Chennai to standstill

Normal life was crippled in Chennai and its suburbs on Friday as rains pounded the city for several hours from Thursday evening, resulting in 30cm of showers in some eight hours and flooding several localities.

But Chennai residents heaved a sigh of relief on Friday morning as the rain clouds gave way to a bright sun. But the weather department predicted more rains in the next 24 hours, triggering fears of a repeat of the devastating December 2015 Chennai floods.

The torrential rains on Thursday flooded localities like Mudichur, Velachery, Alandur, Pallikaranai, Korattur and several parts of North Chennai.

Residents in these localities and also elsewhere complained that the rain water flowing over the streets was mixed with sewage -- and seeping into their homes.

The government ordered schools and colleges shut in Chennai, Kanchipuram, Tiruvallur, Pudukottai and Nagapattiman districts on Friday. Private sector organisations have been urged to declare a holiday or allow people to work from home.

Residents in localities like West Mambalam, Santhome, Mylapore, Vysarpadi and more complained of clogged sewers.

(IANS inputs)