CUDDALORE: Cuddalore district faced severe flooding owing to the release of water from the Sathanur Dam, causing excessive flow into the South Pennai River. Residents alleged that officials had failed to issue them prior warnings.
“It was only after floodwater entered towns that the district administration issued a notice, asking residents to move to safety,” alleged a resident of Kurinji Nagar in Semmandalam.
Flooding began around midnight on Sunday, forcing residents to stay awake all night to protect their belongings. By dawn, water level had risen significantly. "Flooding in the South Pennai River caused damage in 2015 and 2021. Despite these incidents, no effective flood prevention measures have been implemented,” rued N Ragu of Datchinamurthy Nagar.
Residents said though a concrete barrier was built near the collectorate after the 2015 floods, no significant steps were taken in vulnerable areas. The Cuddalore Residents’ Associations Federation claimed it had warned officials about potential flooding before Cyclone Fengal, but it had fallen on deaf ears.
Power supply was cut off in many areas of Cuddalore on Saturday as a precautionary measure. Strong winds uprooted over 100 electric poles, leading to prolonged outages. Some places, especially in rural areas, remained without power on Tuesday, while power was partially restored in others areas.
The outages prevented residents from using motor pumps, causing water shortage. Mobile phones could not be charged, and many areas experienced network disruptions.
Flooding from the Thenpennai River affected traffic on the Puducherry-Cuddalore road for the second day on Tuesday. Vehicles were diverted through the Villupuram-Nagapattinam bypass. With many areas still inundated, collector Sibi Adithya Senthil Kumar announced the closure of schools and colleges in Panchayat union areas of Panruti, Annagramam, Cuddalore and within Cuddalore Corporation limits on Wednesday.
NDRF, police and fire personnel have been deployed for rescue work in affected areas.
Overwash phenomenon
Cuddalore Superintendent of Police R Rajaram led efforts in Babukulam village. He personally handed over a rescued infant to its mother at a safe location. In a separate incident, an elderly man refused to leave his house, who was also rescued and relocated.
Cuddalore Collector Sibi Adhithya Senthil Kumar stated that the recent floods were unexpected and sudden. Speaking to TNIE, he said, “It’s an unexpected and sudden flood. Immediately, teams under me rushed to the villages during the early hours of Sunday and started evacuation works.”
An official from the collectorate explained the situation as a technical phenomenon called overwash. The official said, “Water was not released with a prior plan, and the sudden outburst of rain increased the flood level. If planned, a prior warning could have been issued. However, we alerted people as soon as the flood level started rising.”
