By Anadolu staff
ANKARA (AA) - At least three people were killed as Cyclone Fengal made landfall in India's southern Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coasts on early Sunday morning, packing heavy rains and powerful winds, and forcing a brief flight suspension.
After landfall, Fengal is forecast to move west-southwestward. But so far, the storm remained stationary for six hours near Puducherry, Hindustan Times reported on Sunday.
Tamil Nadu's coastal districts bore Fengal's brunt, with flooded streets, disrupted travel, and lives lost in state capital Chennai.
All three fatalities were reported in rain-related incidents across Chennai.
The Chennai airport resumed flight operations on Sunday at around 4.00 am local time after a brief suspension that grounded over 200 flights.
Flyers, nonetheless, complained of delayed and canceled flights even after the operations resumed.
The storm, the second to develop over the Bay of Bengal this season, brought strong winds reaching up to 90 kilometers per hour (56 miles per hour) as it crossed the coastline.
Weather authorities warned of continued heavy rainfall through Sunday in Chennai, with varying intensity based on cloud cover.
The tropical storm also brought Chennai’s transport network to a standstill as low-lying areas experienced severe waterlogging, with at least 53 roads submerged and seven subways closed.
The Tamil Nadu government extended payment deadlines for electricity bills in an attempt to provide temporary relief to the affected citizens.