The Navy personnel rescued locals from their flooded homes
New Delhi:
The Indian Navy deployed its teams in Chennai to help people stranded across the city as Cyclone Michaung brought with it strong winds and torrential rains.
Locals in submerged colonies of Chennai’s Periyar Nagar and Ram Nagar were evacuated from their flooded homes and taken to safety on inflated boats through the inundated city streets. Personnel waded through waste-deep water to steer the boats.
In some areas, the Navy personnel were seen going door-to-door with food packets in the flooded neighbourhoods. In posts shared by the Navy on X, personnel were seen carrying people to the boats through the flooded streets.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has deployed 29 teams across Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Puducherry for relief and rescue operations, news agency PTI reported quoting a senior officer.
Of the 29, 14 teams have been deployed in Tamil Nadu (five in Chennai), 11 in Andhra Pradesh, one in Telangana and three in Puducherry.
The disaster response force is focused on Andhra Pradesh since the cyclone made landfall in the state and that uprooted trees and poles could lead to communication and power outages, the officer said.
Additional teams have been put on standby and will be pressed into action on the state governments’ requests, an NDRF officer said.