CHENNAI: Once again, IMD ’s red and orange alerts turned out to be a false alarm. Except for some light rain spells, city and the suburbs were mostly dry on Wednesday as schools and colleges stayed shut. Between 8:30am and 7:30pm, Nungambakkam recorded 2.6mm and Meenambakkam 1.2mm of rainfall. Ranipet recorded the highest at 73mm, and Dharmapuri 57mm. India Meteorological Department (IMD) quietly withdrew its red alert for Chengalpet and three other north Tamil Nadu districts, citing a weakening weather system, and issued fresh warnings for Tiruvallur and Ranipet instead.

The well-marked low pressure over the Bay of Bengal, which the agency said would intensify into a depression, fizzled out as it lay over north coastal Tamil Nadu by Wednesday evening. It may weaken into a

See Full Page