Emden Attack, 1914

Madras has always been a important city/ landmark for the british administration since early times. As a result we also had to face the burnt of being the only Indian city to be attacked by the German cruiser ship Emden during the First World War. 🌎
On September 22 1914, German cruiser SMS Emden advanced close to the Madras shore and opened fire at storage tanks of the British-owned Burmah Oil Company. The Emden’s captain, Karl von Muller directed the ship into the Madras harbour managing to elude the British navy that had a huge fleet in the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean. At 9.30pm, the port was completely illuminated despite a blackout order, when Muller gave the order to engage. An attack by a German warship was the last thing that overconfident British navy officers in Madras expected.

The German ship fired at least 125 shells within 10 minutes. The shells targeted and destroyed four tanks containing 350,000 gallons of oil. Some historians say Fort St George was the main target of the German warship but the sailors proved to be poor marksmen.

By the time the British responded, Emden had left the area after destroying the oil tanks and merchant ships inside the harbour.

SOURCE: THE HINDU | TOI

Madras Flood, 1943

Rains are lovely, refreshing and our vast agricultural community depends on it. But when rain takes a turn for cyclone. Not even the mighty madras stands a chance. Madras braved a rainy season like the one in 2015.
It was the October of 1943. An unrelenting downpour that lasted around six days led to breaches in tanks and canals and swollen lakes and rivers, and rendered thousands homeless and resulted in loss of lives and property.
The Cooum broke its embankments and gushed forth into alarming streams that plunged many areas — including Kilpauk, Purasaiwalkam, Perambur, Mount Road, Egmore, Chindatripet and Pudupet — into complete disarray. The Adyar river also swelled and overflowed, but the damage was restricted to the areas in its vicinity.
Slum dwellers around Madras and residents of working class localities — which included Choolai, Perambur, Kosapet, Kondithope and Chintadripet — bore the brunt of the flood fury. Their huts and tenements destroyed, they were sheltered in Corporation schools and Government buildings and marriage halls.
The Ripon Buildings overflowed with residents of Pudupet and Chintadripet. Residents of worst-hit neighbourhoods moved to the places — such as Mylapore, George Town, Royapuram and parts of Triplicane — where the floods did not wreak much havoc. Just like this time, the crisis brought people together. Citizens formed groups that fed the homeless. The Mayor’s Flood Relief Fund, instituted in the 1930s, was resurrected and opened for donations. The Council of the Madras Corporation transferred Rs. 50,000 from the general funds to this Fund. People from all walks of life pitched in. One of the amazing things about Madras and its people is their resilience. Hell or high waters, the city always gets back on its feet!

Source:The Hindu