Indian Army troops from the Chennai Garrison Battalion, operating under the Dakshin Bharat Area, were mobilized in the early hours of Sunday to assist in rescue operations in flood-affected areas of Puducherry.
Requisitioned by the Puducherry District Collector around 1 am, a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) column consisting of one officer, six Junior commissioned officers and 62 other ranks was deployed swiftly. The team left Chennai at 2 am and covered a distance of 160 kilometres overnight, reaching Puducherry around 5:30 am.
The team led by Major Ajay Sangwan was briefed about the critical situation in the Krishna Nagar area upon reaching Puducherry. The water level in some localities of Krishna Nagar rose to nearly five feet, leaving residents of nearly 500 houses stranded.
The efforts made by the Indian Army during its rescue operations started at 6:15 am, with over 100 individuals being evacuated in the first two hours.
Cyclone Fengal remains stationary for the last six hours close to the union territory nearly 30 kilometres north of Cuddalore and 40 kms east of Villupuram.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) informed that as of 5:30 in the morning, the cyclone has not moved in the past six hours and remains stationary 120 kilometres south-southwest of Chennai.
It is expected to move westward slowly and likely to weaken into a deep depression over north coastal Tamil Nadu and Puducherry in the next six hours, as per IMD.
The weather department has issued a red alert for north Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and adjoining south Andhra Pradesh.
“The Cyclonic Storm Fengal over north coastal Tamil Nadu & Puducherry remained stationary during past 6 hours and lay centred at 0530 hours IST of today, the 1st December 2024 over the same region near latitude 12.0°N and longitude 79.8°E, close to Puducherry, about 30 km north of Cuddalore, 40 km east of Villupuram and 120 km south-southwest of Chennai. It is likely to move westwards slowly and weaken gradually into a deep depression over north coastal Tamil Nadu and Puducherry during the next 6 hours. The system is being continuously monitored,” IMD said.
After Cyclone Fengal made landfall yesterday, the beaches in Chennai witnessed high tides and rough sea conditions this morning. The weather forecast issued by the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) predicted “isolated heavy to very heavy” rainfall in Chennai for Sunday.
The official statement added that residents in the affected areas have been advised to remain indoors and follow all instructions from local authorities to ensure their safety. Meanwhile, people living in nearby areas have been shifted to relief camps near Kalpakkam in Chengalpattu district, in the wake of Cyclone Fengal.