Cyclone Fengal: Historical rains in Villupuram and Puducherry
Slow-moving cyclonic storm ‘Fengal’ has brought unprecedented rainfall to Villupuram and Puducherry, where it made landfall shortly before Saturday midnight.
Torrential rains lashed Villupuram, Puducherry and surrounding areas from Saturday night, resulting in the union territory recording 49 cm of rainfall, the highest in its history, and the automatic weather station in Mailam registering 51cm, the highest-ever recorded in Villupuram district.
According to official sources, at least four people died in rain-related incidents in Puducherry, three in Tiruvannamalai and one each in Vellore and Chennai districts.
Schools in Vellore, Ranipet, Tirupattur, Dharmapuri and Salem, and both school and colleges in Tiruvannamalai, Cuddalore, Villupuram, Puducherry and Krishnagiri, will remain closed on Monday due to the rains.
The record-breaking rainfall resulted in residential areas and arterial roads in Puducherry being completely flooded and the Uppanar canal overwhelmed.
Parts of Villupuram district were also heavily inundated, however, no deaths related to the rain have been reported there, officials said.