Tamil Nadu rain situation worsens, Chennai airport to remain shut till December 6
Chennai: Chennai airport will remain shut till December 6 in the wake of battering rains that have left the facility unusable, Airports Authority of India (AAI) announced on Wednesday.
The AAI's decision also follows prediction by the IMD that there will be rains for next 72 hours over Chennai and suburbs with the next 48 hours being "very crucial."
"Chennai Aerodrome has been closed up to 12 noon of the December 6, 2015. The situation is being closely monitored and any further action will be taken subject to review for resumption of services as soon as possible," the AAI, which runs the airport, said in statement on Wednesday.
India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director General Laxman Singh Rathore attributed the heavy rains to a "trough of low" over Southwest Bay of Bengal off Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka coast which will continue to bring rains over the next three days. Thereafter, the state will see an anti-cyclone activity which will be associated with "heavy rains" at some places.
"The phenomenon will continue for the next seven days, but the next 48 hours are very crucial. Neighbouring states will also see rainfall activity," Rathore said.
Earlier on Wednesday morning, as many as 3,500 people, including 1,500 passengers, were stranded at the Chennai international airport. Airports Authority of India (AAI) said all the stranded passengers were moved out of the airport, but did not reveal the exact number of those evacuated so far.
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Meanwhile, Army, Navy and the Air Force came to the rescue of thousands of people, including hospital patients, severely hit by heavy rains in Chennai that have left several parts of the city submerged.
Besides rushing in with rescue teams, the armed forces have also launched UAVs to assess the situation. Indian Army's four columns, including troops from the Garrison Infantry Battalion located at Chennai besides one column rushed in by road from Bangalore, continue to carry out extensive rescue and relief operations at Tambaram, Mudichur, Manipakam, Guduvancheri and Urapakkam areas.
The Army is addressing the most critical areas where flood water levels have reached 10-12 feet, sources said. Over 30 Army trucks have also been deployed for evacuating people stranded in areas where the water level is less than 6 feet.
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The Army column located at Guduvancheri and Urupakkam have rescued over 600 marooned people in Waigai Nagar and Priya Nagar. The Army column at Manipakkam has evacuated over 800 people, including students in and around Kutheri, to safer places.
Another Army column operating at Mudichur has rescued over 750 people by 4 pm.
The rescue column from Bangalore was deployed this morning for rescue operations at MIOT hospital, Guindy from where it successfully evacuated over 200 people including patients.
While rescue operations are in full swing, three more Army columns from Bangalore are being brought in with equipment to augment rescue and relief efforts, they said.
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Additional two columns have been kept on standby in Secunderabad in Andhra Pradesh for any contingencies. With civil communication non-functional in several areas of Chennai, the Army is resorting to radio communication for coordinating rescue operations.
The Navy too has chipped in with three teams. Following incessant rains in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh and in large parts of Tamil Nadu, requests were received by the Air Force from the two governments for positioning helicopters at Tirupati and Tambram.
The IAF promptly responded to the call for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief and has positioned two Mi 17 helicopters of Southern Air Command at Tirupati. Two Mi 17 helicopters are in Bangalore and Thanjavur for airdropping food packets, water and medicines in Chennai and for evacuating those marooned.
As soon as the weather is fit for helicopter operations, these will move to Chennai to assist the state disaster management authorities in their efforts to provide succour to those hit by the deluge.
One C-17 military transport aircraft has landed at Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh with three teams of National Disaster Response Force, while another has taken off from Palam with three more NDRF contingents. A C-130 J aircraft has also been rushed for reconnaissance missions.
