Scores of trees uprooted by squall in Madurai

Sudden squall causes chaos in Madurai with uprooted trees, fallen branches, power outages, and traffic snarls.

Scores of trees, big and small, were uprooted and their branches broken by a squall which accompanied sudden showers here on Friday evening.

A huge branch of a tree broke and fell down on a car parked under it. A few other vehicles, including an autorickshaw and two-wheelers suffered damage in similar incidents in other parts.

The uprooted trees also snapped overhead power lines near Kuruvikkaran Salai and at Santhapettai.

With the powerline dangling dangerously low, police expeditiously blocked the portion of road near Kuruvikkaran Salai junction traffic signal and diverted the vehicles as a precautionary measure.

Before the tree could be removed, traffic snarls were reported in Anna Nagar and around Anna Bus stand as hundreds of vehicles tried to move from all directions.

Water stagnation was reported on arterial roads which slowed down the vehicular movement. Many stretches of South Bank Road and Kamarajar Salai were flooded with rainwater.

Two electric poles were pulled down by the falling of a tree in Santhaipettai. Power supply that got snapped around 4.30 p.m. could not be restored till late in the night.