Chennai | November 28, 2025:
South India is reeling under the impact of twin cyclones Senyar and Ditwah, which intensified over the Bay of Bengal on November 27 and unleashed torrential rains, flash floods, and destructive winds across Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, and the Andaman & Nicobar Islands. The severe weather has forced the evacuation of more than 10,000 residents, while five people have lost their lives in rain-related incidents.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Cyclone Senyar—now a deep depression near Sri Lanka—has triggered heavy to very heavy rainfall, prompting school closures in Chennai and red alerts for isolated extremely heavy downpours on November 29 and 30. Cyclone Ditwah, developing near Myanmar, has further intensified monsoon-like conditions with winds reaching 80 km/h, worsening flooding in several districts.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has deployed over 5,000 relief personnel and mobilized multiple National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams to assist in evacuation and rescue. The state has announced ₹2 lakh compensation for the families of victims, which include a fisherman in Thoothukudi and two children killed in a landslide near Kochi.
IMD Director Mrutyunjay Mohapatra warned of a high risk of landslides across the Western Ghats, where persistent rainfall has destabilized slopes. Early estimates show damage to nearly 2 lakh hectares of paddy fields and crop losses exceeding ₹500 crore.
The cyclonic activity has been linked to ongoing La Niña patterns, which have intensified what is already a record-breaking wet season in 2025. While the heavy rains have replenished water reservoirs and improved conditions in drought-hit areas, they have also pushed disaster-response systems to their limits.
Evacuation operations continue as of 5:00 AM IST on November 28, with authorities warning that heavy showers may persist until December 1. The back-to-back storms have renewed calls for strengthened climate adaptation measures and upgraded early warning systems to protect vulnerable coastal communities.
