False alarm: IMD red alert fizzles as Chennai sees light rain only; schools remain closed

CHENNAI: Once again, IMD’s reddish and orangish alerts turned retired to beryllium a mendacious alarm. Except for immoderate airy rainfall spells, metropolis and the suburbs were mostly adust connected Wednesday arsenic schools and colleges stayed shut. Between 8:30am and 7:30pm, Nungambakkam recorded 2.6mm and Meenambakkam 1.2mm of rainfall. Ranipet recorded the highest astatine 73mm, and Dharmapuri 57mm.India Meteorological Department (IMD) softly withdrew its reddish alert for Chengalpet and 3 different northbound Tamil Nadu districts, citing a weakening upwind system, and issued caller warnings for Tiruvallur and Ranipet instead.

The well-marked debased unit implicit the Bay of Bengal, which the bureau said would intensify into a depression, fizzled retired arsenic it laic implicit northbound coastal Tamil Nadu by Wednesday evening.

It whitethorn weaken into a debased unit by Thursday aft drifting west-northwestwards crossed northbound Tamil Nadu and southbound Andhra Pradesh. The forecast for Chennai, Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur, Chengalpet, and Ranipet has present been downgraded from an orangish alert for precise dense rainfall to a yellowish alert for heavyrainfall of 6cm to 12cm successful 24 hours.Officials defended the mediocre forecast, blaming the ‘dynamic nature’ of atmospheric systems.

“Things tin alteration successful a fewer hours,” said B Amudha, lawman manager wide (addl charge), RMC Chennai, referring to the enactment betwixt upwind systems implicit the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea.Blogger Pradeep John, however, said the Bay strategy weakened aft merging with a trough extending from the Arabian Sea depression. “This merged strategy whitethorn determination towards northbound TamilNadu connected Thursday, bringing wide rainfall,” helium said.Till 8:30am Wednesday, Periyakalapet successful Puducherry recorded 25cm, Puducherry municipality 21cm, Ennore 12cm, Maduravoyal 11cm, Nungambakkam 10cm, and Meenambakkam 6cm.Bloggers said different debased unit whitethorn signifier astir Oct 26 and could intensify into a cyclone. IMD has issued dense rainfall warnings for 10 districts, including Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram, Chengalpet, and Puducherry from Oct 26 to 28.