Chennai, Sep 15 — Heavy rain is likely to lash nine Tamil Nadu districts on Tuesday, while the Nilgiris and Coimbatore may continue to experience heavy showers accompanied by strong winds until September 20, the Regional Meteorological Centre said.
A trough extending from southern interior Karnataka to the southwest Bay of Bengal is influencing weather conditions across the state. Under its influence, heavy rain has been forecast for the Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Erode, Salem, Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Vellore, Tirupattur and Ranipet districts.
Moderate rain accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning is also likely in Madurai, Dindigul, Virudhunagar and Sivaganga.
On Wednesday, heavy showers may occur in Tiruvannamalai, Vellore, Tirupattur and Ranipet, the Cauvery delta districts of Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Mayiladuthurai and Nagapattinam. Chennai may receive moderate rain during the evening or night. However, maximum temperatures could remain up to three degrees Celsius above normal at isolated places in interior Tamil Nadu, the weather agency warned.
Several rain-related incidents were reported after widespread showers lashed different parts of the state.
In Perambalur district, heavy rain accompanied by thunder and lightning over the Pachamalai hills caused sudden flooding in fields and streams near Adakkampatti village. Several people who had gone towards the foothills were stranded after rising water cut off their return route. Local residents subsequently rescued them with the help of ropes.
Two people were killed in separate lightning strikes. Sonuram Kond, a 25-year-old worker from Odisha, died after being struck by lightning while engaged in borewell construction work at Silvarpatti near Reddiyarchatram in Dindigul district. In Tenkasi district, Kasirajan, a mason, was killed by lightning while working at a construction site in Krishnapuram near Kadayanallur during light rain.
Near Sholavandan in Madurai district, a large tree was uprooted during heavy rain and fell on an electricity pole. Power supply was immediately suspended as a safety measure. A delay in removing the fallen tree resulted in an outage lasting more than two hours, inconveniencing local residents.
Heavy showers also caused waterlogging on roads in Virudhunagar, while rainwater entered several shops, affecting residents and traders.
Moderate rainfall brought relief to people and farmers in several parts of Theni district. Kodaikanal and its surrounding areas experienced cooler weather after receiving moderate rain for over three hours. Paramakudi in Ramanathapuram district also recorded widespread rainfall for about an hour during the afternoon, bringing relief from the prevailing humid conditions.