The Tamil Nadu police rescued 1,16,592 people stranded in flood waters after Cyclone Michaung struck Chennai and three northern districts, Director-General of Police/Head of Police Force Shankar Jiwal has said.
While 1,09,008 people were rescued in Chennai, Tambaram and Avadi Commissionerates, the police reached out to 7,584 residents who could not move to safety in Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur and Chengalpattu districts. More than 18,000 police personnel trained in disaster management by the Tamil Nadu Commando School equipped with flood relief equipment, including 175 boats, were stationed before the heavy rains in vulnerable locations.
“We were fully prepared in terms of manpower and infrastructure. Personnel attached to the District Disaster Response Teams that were deployed at 12 districts across the city by the Greater Chennai Police swung into action responding to every single SOS. Besides calls to the police control room and other State-run emergency response centres, we even reached out to people who sought help through social media,” he told The Hindu on Friday.
