Chennai: Fingers crossed! Chennai and Tamil Nadu can expect rain on Thursday and Friday. The rain will be welcomed as it may help break the long dry spell in the state even after the North East Monsoon was said to have set in. A cyclonic storm is expected to hit the TN coast between Vedaraiyam and the capital Chennai on Friday.
In a bulletin issued on Tuesday, the Indian Meteorological Department said a depression has formed over southeast Bay of Bengal, currently centred about 1,070 km east-southeast of Chennai, 1,030 km east-southeast of Puducherry and 720 km east-southeast of Trincomalee in Sri Lanka. It is likely to bring heavy rainfall to coastal Tamil Nadu, which indicates revival of the north east monsoon that has been rather inactive, especially in northern parts of the state since its onset in end October
Such rain would also be a great coincidence as the city of Chennai experienced its wettest single day in history on December 1, 2015 with a record 50 cms of rain in a 36-hour period beginning on Dec. 1, 2015. Some spells of rain on Thursday and Friday are forecast to be heavy.
“The system is very likely to move west-northwestwards, intensify into a deep depression during next 24 hours and into a cyclonic storm in subsequent 24 hours. It is very likely to cross north Tamil Nadu coast between Vedaraniyam and Chennai by the morning of December 2,” the IMD said.
It has also asked fishermen not to venture into sea along and off Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coasts from Wednesday evening. “Squally winds speed reaching 45-55 kmph gusting to 65 kmph would commence to prevail along and off Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coasts from December 1. Sea condition would be rough to very rough along off Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coasts from December 1 onward,” the IMD bulletin said.
