Chennai Corporation readies 75 relief centres to help during cyclone – The Hindu

The Greater Chennai Corporation has started work on relief centres at 75 locations across the city ahead of the cyclonic storm.

Chennai Corporation Deputy Commissioner (Works) Meghanatha Reddy said each of the 15 zones would get five relief centres to help residents in vulnerable areas. A total of 170 relief centres were likely to be readied, based on the requirements of each neighbourhood.

As many as 19 areas are vulnerable to flooding. Civic officials have been asked to advise residents in such areas to reach relief centres 24 hours ahead of the cyclonic storm.

Special teams have been formed to remove trees uprooted during the storm. Toilets and drinking water supply facilities have been readied for relief centres. Assistant engineers have started identifying weak structures that are likely to cause injury to commuters, pedestrians and residents during the cyclone.

Disaster management expert N. Mathavan, who worked on the resilience index for Chennai, said residents should avoid venturing out during rain as a number of high-rise buildings have weak structures that may cause injury to pedestrians. “Residents should follow the guidelines issued by the State. It is not a repeat of the 2015 floods. It is going to be the repeat of the event in 2016 when Chennai successfully handled the cyclone without any major disasters. At the same time, this situation is different due to COVID-19. Residents should follow protocol. Proper arrangements should be made in relief centres to handle medical emergencies,” he added.

Corporation officials said all preparations for maintenance of subways, draining of water from low lying areas and identifying elderly and pregnant women in vulnerable areas have been done in 200 wards in the 426 sq km of the city.

More than 1,000 dilapidated buildings have already been identified by the civic officials. Residents have been advised not to go near such structures.

The Corporation will conduct a meeting of monitoring officials on Tuesday and start using social media to issue advisories. Many of the 3,500 Corporation buildings are also dilapidated.