NDRF doubles strength, rescues over 5,000 in TN

With the addition of 15 more teams overnight to an equal number of units working since Wednesday, the force has begun penetrating deep into the affected areas, including Puducherry.

An official update provided by the force said over 5,000 people have been rescued from various parts of Tamil Nadu till 3pm on Thursday.

On Thursday morning, a meeting of the Crisis Management Group (CMG) was convened under the Chairmanship of Union Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi. 

“We have 30 teams, each having 40 members, working in these areas now and we plan to concentrate in the areas of South Chennai, which are the worst-affected. The meeting chaired by the Union Home Secretary took stock of the preparedness of various agencies,” said NDRF Chief OP Singh. He said the force has deployed 110 inflatable and other kinds of boats and separate assortment of buoys and life jackets with the rescue teams.

The meeting also decided to move two additional columns of the Army in these areas and officials of these central departments were asked to keep in constant touch with their Tamil Nadu counterparts, a Home Ministry spokesperson said.

One column of the Army comprises around 75 personnel.

“About 813 life jackets, 515 life buoys and 20 deep diving sets, along with 44 trained divers, are engaged to assist the local administration in the disaster relief work,” an NDRF spokesperson said.

DG Singh said his teams were hopeful of getting into “more and more areas today as the rains have slowed down since yesterday and we have seen water receding in many areas. We are hopeful of doing more than what we did yesterday.”

The force has also deployed two teams in Puducheri, while another set of teams are on standby in Patna and Pune which can be airlifted at short notice, he said. The force has also activated helpline numbers in the national Capital which are – 011-24363260, 09711077372.

As the Chennai airport is shut due to flooding, the NDRF is operating from the ‘INS Rajali’ Naval airbase in nearby Arakkonam.

The Air India has also spread its wings to stand by the flood-ravaged state in its hour of crisis. The Chennai airport is closed till December 6. In view of thousands stranded in Chennai and no air connectivity to and fro, the Air India pulled out all stops to rise to the challenge. 

Meanwhile, those stranded mainly include migrant workers and out-station students, who are eagerly waiting to return to their hometowns.

People have been forced to seek shelter in far-away hotels or homes of relatives, while the poor are taking shelter at railway stations or crowded rescue camps.