The ancestral house of late DMK chief M Karunanidhi's family at Thirukuvalai village near here has suffered damage in the 'Gaja' cyclone, officials said Tuesday. A tree in front of the house got uprooted and fell on the house damaging the tiled roof and a name board, they said. The house is being maintained as a memorial and a library.

Severe cyclonic storm 'Gaja' crossed between the Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coast between Nagapattinam and Vedaranniyam early Friday, with wind speed gusting up to 120 km per-hour, a weather bulletin said. According to Tamil Nadu State Disaster Management Authority, as-many-as 76,290 people were evacuated from low lying areas and sheltered at over 300 relief centres in six districts including Nagapattinam, Pudukottai, Ramanathapuram and Tiruvarur.

Cyclone Gaja is expected to hit the coast near Nagapattinam in southern Tamil Nadu tonight. Schools and colleges in five-districts in the state and Puducherry are closed today. As it approaches the coast, "Gaja", which means elephant in Sanskrit, is expected to bring heavy-rain and strong-winds in coastal Tamil-Nadu and Puducherry. The Navy has been put on high-alert to be ready for any assistance.