Cyclone Mandous Update: Storm Causes Destruction in Tamil Nadu, Several Trees Uprooted, Power Poles Fallen in Chennai

Between 10.30 and 11.15 p.m. on Friday, Cyclone Mandous made landfall near Mamallapuram, 30 km from Chennai. As a result, sections of coastal Tamil Nadu experienced torrential rains and squally winds.

With winds of 75 kmph, the storm tore through the coast between Sriharihota and Puducherry, causing devastation in Chennai where trees were uprooted, the electrical supply was cut off, and low-lying districts suffered flooding. The India Meteorological Department reported that in the 24 hours ending at 5.30 am, the city received 115.1 mm of rain.

In the early hours of Saturday, the cyclone began to weaken and became a deep depression. Its center was located around 40 km west-southwest of Chennai and 55 km north-northwest of Mahabalipuram. By this afternoon, it will further deteriorate into a depression. The majority of the state of Tamil Nadu is expected to get light to moderate rainfall, with isolated areas across the interior north experiencing heavy to very heavy rainfall.

Due to the predicted rain, a holiday has been declared for schools and institutions on Saturday in Chennai as well as neighboring districts including Vellore, Villupuram, Cuddalore, Ranipet, Tiruvallur, Chengalpattu, and Kancheepuram.

For security, relief, and rescue operations, up to 16,000 police officers and 1,500 home guards have been stationed in the state; a 40-member team of the Tamil Nadu State Disaster Response Force as well as 12 District Disaster Response Force teams are also on standby, according to the police. The NDRF and State Disaster Response Force teams have around 400 personnel stationed in coastal areas, especially close to the Cauvery delta region.

Cyclone Mandous crosses Tamil Nadu coast: Recent Updates

According to the IMD, the cyclonic storm Mandous weakened into a deep depression over the northern Tamil Nadu coast and would continue to diminish as it moves west-northwestwards by noon on Saturday. According to the city police, approximately 100 trees fell in different regions of the metro, and 52 have been removed in conjunction with its personnel. Five power poles collapsed, three of which were already cleared.