Chennai: With the fourth successive cyclone on the east coast giving Tamil Nadu a miss, the state is reeling under a tremendous rainfall deficit this northeast monsoon season.
With 23 more days to go for the end of this main rainfall season, weathermen hope for some revival of the monsoon.
"There could be a little bit of rain over the coastal areas from cyclone Madi. But it has started drifting towards the northeast and so the possibility of its crossing land is very limited. It has already been categorised as a very severe cyclonic storm and it might weaken over the sea or take a slightly different track," said a Met official.
According to a weather blogger R. Pradeep John, the cyclone will remain on the same intensity or strengthen for two more days and then weaken very fast due to high wind shear and low sea surface temperature.
The Met office has predicted only isolated rain or thundershowers over a few places in the state for the next three days. Dr Y.E.A. Raj, deputy director general of meteorology, Regional Meteorological Centre, said there are chances of strong winds over Chennai. "Apart from fishermen who have been asked not to venture into the sea, even the bigger cargo vessels need to be careful while navigating in the Bay of Bengal," he added.
While activities in the Bay helped the state record normal rainfall in the week that ended December 4, overall, the state has recorded a deficit of 30 per cent rainfall for the monsoon season from October 1 till December 8. Tamil Nadu has recorded only 27.3 cm mean rainfall, compared to the normal of 39 cm.
Similarly, Chennai, too, has so far registered deficient rainfall of 33 per cent for the season, while it recorded excess rains of 38 per cent for the week that ended December 4.
For a 24-hour period that ended on 8.30 am on Sunday, Ennore registered the highest rainfall in the state at 3 cm, followed by Nungambakkam at 2 cm. Guindy, Madhavaram, TarÂaÂÂmani, MahabÂalipuÂram, Anna University, MeÂenÂaÂmbakkam and Red hills each received 1 cm rain.
