Journalism of Courage

TN braces for heavy rain as cyclone Ditwah inches closer, CM Stalin takes stock of situation

12 NDRF and 16 SDRF teams mobilised to Chennai; several trains running to Rameshwaram, Madurai, Kanyakumari partially cancelled.

By: Express News Service
Bengaluru | November 29, 2025 11:19 AM IST

2 min read

Strong winds bend palm trees and waves crash against a seawall during rough sea conditions triggered by Cyclone Ditwah, in Ramanathapuram, Tamil Nadu, Friday, Nov. 28, 2025. (PTI Photo)

Tamil Nadu is bracing for extremely heavy rainfall on Saturday as cyclone Ditwah inches closer to its coast.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a ‘red’ alert for Tamil Nadu on Saturday, when the state will experience rainfall (over 204mm in 24 hours). By Sunday, the rainfall will shift to the northern coastal districts, when the cyclone will be closest to the Indian coast.

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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin took stock of the situation and has directed district collectors in 14 districts to take necessary measures.

As of 5.30 am satellite images of the storm, the cyclone was located at about 190 km south-southeast of Karaikal, 300 km south-southeast of Puduchery and about 400 km south of Chennai. It continues to hover over Sri Lanka, at about 110 km northwest of Trincomalee.

Also Read | Cyclone Ditwah LIVE location tracker: How to check live location, path, status, speed and landfall alerts in real-time

Some of the areas in Tamil Nadu, where overnight rainfall lashed were Pamban – 70 mm, Nagapattinam – 60 mm, Karaikal, Tondi, Vedharanyam – 50 mm, Adiramapatinam and Nagapattinam – 30 mm.

On the further movement of Ditwah, the Met department said, “It is very likely to move north-northwestwards across coastal Sri Lanka and reach near North Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and adjoining south Andhra Pradesh coasts by Sunday morning.”

Coastal Andhra Pradesh, Yanam and Rayalaseema will receive heavy to very heavy rainfall (64 – 115mm in 24 hours) both on Saturday and Sunday, with the IMD issuing ‘orange’ alert for south coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh on both the days. Kerala, Mahe and Telangana will also experience moderate rainfall through the weekend.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has mobilised at least 12 teams in Tamil Nadu, and some more teams are headed towards Chennai. In addition, 16 teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) have also been roped-in in the region.

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The Southern Railway has announced partial cancellation of 12 and short termination of 11 trains running to Rameshwaram, Madurai, Kanyakumari in view of the impending rainfall associated with the storm.