Mumbai: IMD issues yellow alert for today, light rain on cards

Mumbai on Friday recorded an intense wet spell from the early hours — an increase in the rain intensity — with several parts of the island city and suburban belt receiving moderate and heavy rain throughout the day. The city has been witnessing sporadic spells of rain for the past two weeks, said the IMD.

The Colaba weather observatory on Friday recorded 22.4 millimetres (mm) of rainfall till 5:30 pm, and the Santacruz observatory 32.6 mm. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), meanwhile, recorded an overall 60 mm of rain across its observatories at Nariman Point, Vikhroli and Versova.

“Mumbai may record light to moderate rain, along with thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds (30-40 km/hour) in isolated places,” read the IMD bulletin, adding that the wet spell is likely to continue till Tuesday (October 11).

IMD scientist Sushma Nair said that the current weather pattern has been favourable for rain in the city. “A low pressure has developed in the Bay of Bengal, with a trough in the coastal region of Maharashtra. The trough is passing over the state from the coastal region of Andhra Pradesh, owing to which Maharashtra is witnessing rainfall across the state and it is likely to continue over the next week,” said Nair.

Earlier, the official date for monsoon retreat in the state was between October 8 and 10, however, IMD officials maintained that it is likely to get delayed for the next few days. Mahesh Palawat, Skymet Weather, said, “Monsoon retreat is likely to take place only after October 13.”

The Colaba observatory on Friday recorded a maximum temperature of 29.4 degree Celsius (°C) and a minimum of 24.8°C, and the Santacruz observatory recorded 30°C and 26°C, respectively.