Padur relives 2015 scare as over 500 houses inundated

CHENNAI: After six years, the harrowing scenes of the 2015 flash floods are back to haunt the public in Padur, off high-profile OMR and dubbed as a developing area. About 500 houses are now disconnected from other localities, thanks to the waist-deep water and the fresh spells of rains over the past two days. The breach and overflow of the nearby water bodies have added to the monsoon woes of the public.

The residents said after 2015, the locality is now again flooded due to the heavy flow of water from Padur Lake. The unchecked encroachment is the main reason for the water to change its course of flow draining into the Buckingham canal. The Padur Lake is an outlet for over seven adjacent lakes that will reach the Bay of Bengal through Buckingham Canal which is 2.4 km in width, a local activist pointed out.

Padur experiences a peculiar condition because in other areas the water would drain when the rains stop, but in Padur, the water stagnates for days and drains only when the water level in Buckingham Canal comes down. Due to the recent rains, more than 50 per cent of the roads are inundated with water up to 4 feet,” said Ashok Rajan, a resident.

According to local civic officials, only around 100 houses suffered waterlogging till Thursday, but the continuous rains since Friday have adversely affected another 400 houses. The residents are now shifted to a special camp arranged at a government high school and have been provided food by a charitable trust.

“For the past 10 years, no focused steps taken such as stormwater drains and cut-and-cover drains construction, were carried out,” said Krishnan K, another resident of Padur.

A senior official from Padur Panchayat said the officials inspected the waterlogged area and will take steps at the earliest.