Schools in Chennai, Cuddalore, Kanchipuram, Tiruvallur and Nagapattinam have been declared closed for two days, on Thursday and Friday owing to Cyclone Nada.
Nagapattinam collector Munuswamy told TNM: “We have given a holiday for schools. We will have a meeting to decide if colleges need to be shut as they have examinations scheduled”
The Met Department on Wednesday said that the depression over the Bay of Bengal has intensified into a cyclonic storm. Cyclone Nada is expected to cross Tamil Nadu near Cuddalore in the early hours of December 2.
IMD has predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall for 48 hours commencing December 1 in coastal and interior Tamil Nadu.
Wind speed is expected to pick up pace and people across the coastal city may witness squally wind with the speed of 45-55 kmph increasing to 65 kmph.
Speaking to The News Minute, an IMD official said that Tamil Nadu is expected to have heavy rainfall from December 1, ranging from 6-12 cm rainfall.
Fishermen have been asked not to venture out into the sea.
Weather bloggers and others have asked people in Chennai city not to panic. On December 1, 2015, Chennai received more than 35cms rainfall. The rains which lashed the city during that period caused one of the worst natural disasters the city has ever seen.
Following IMD's cyclone alert, the state government has instructed all district collectors to take all precautionary measures and necessary action including evacuating people from low lying and vulnerable areas to the relief centres.
The TN government has also advised the general public to listen to the latest updates from IMD and to move to relief centres as and when advised by the district collector. Public may contact 1070 / 1077 (toll free Nos. for help) in emergency situations.
Two teams of NDRF and one team of SDRF are being positioned in Cuddalore, and one team each in Nagapattinam and Chennai as a precautionary measur