The storm hit the densely populated coast of Tamil Nadu with winds of 140 kilometers per hour, causing widespread wind damage. Tens of thousands of people were evacuated from their homes as the cyclone approached, and flights and trains were cancelled. As the storm raged, trees and power lines were torn down and a number of vehicles were overturned. A total of 224mm of rain poured down on the city, causing significant flooding. This is much more than the average for the whole of December, which is just 146mm.

Cyclone Vardah, which ripped through Chennai on Monday, wrought massive damage to the east coast Indian city, killing 18 and wrecking 13 newbuild OSVs under construction at Larson & Toubro’s yard. Splash has received exclusive images of the naval carnage brought by the cyclone, carried below, which also felled more than 12,000 trees and knocked out most of the city’s electricity. The newbuilds damaged, comprise a mix of AHTSs and PSVs, all ordered by Halul Offshore from the UAE. Undersea internet cables were also knocked out as winds measuring 192 kph battered the city.

Sourced by splash247