Relentless rain steals May's thunder, heat down by 8 degrees

Indore: Indore city continued to see yet another bout of heavy rainfall, which resulted in bringing down the heat by 8 degrees and increasing water woes, on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, the day began with humid conditions, but by 1pm, dark clouds gathered, and by 2:30 pm, intense rain lashed several parts of the city. The showers continued intermittently for about an hour, bringing down the temperature and offering brief relief from the sultry weather. According to meteorologists, more rain and gusty winds are in store, and this weather pattern may persist for another two to three days.

The impact of the rain was evident in a sharp drop in both day and night temperatures over the past 48 hours. Day temperature, which were at 40.8 degrees Celsius, dropped to 32.4 degrees Celsius—a fall of 8 degrees. Night temperature dropped significantly from 24.5 degrees Celsius during the first week of May to 19.2 degrees Celsius on Tuesday. A total of 24.1 mm of rainfall was reported in the city on Tuesday till 8:30 pm. The city recorded 26 mm of rainfall on Monday and 70.2 mm on Sunday.

Despite this decrease in temperature, post-rain humidity added to people's discomfort. More concerning, the downpour once again exposed the shortcomings in the city's civic infrastructure. Several major roads were waterlogged, and power supply was disrupted in many areas for hours. Residents reported that electricity helplines remained unreachable during the outage. Strong winds also caused branches to fall and posters to tear across the city. Areas such as Chhatribagh, Hemu Kalani Square, Palsikar Colony, Ahilyashram, MR-10, Khajrana, and Vijay Nagar experienced severe waterlogging, slowing down traffic and causing jams once vehicles returned to the roads after the rain subsided.

The unseasonal showers have already crossed 3.75 inches this month, an unusual figure for May, well ahead of the monsoon. So far, the city has received nearly 96 mm of rainfall in May—an unusual occurrence, considering the monsoon is still over a month away. This is also the highest monthly rainfall recorded in May in a decade. The sudden rain affected wedding functions and damaged standing crops like onions and green vegetables, worrying local farmers.

As per IMD Bhopal, two cyclonic circulations and a trough linked to a western disturbance are behind the change in weather. Thunderstorms and rain may continue till May 10, with temperature expected to rise gradually thereafter. "The storm system is expected to persist until May 10, gradually shifting to central and eastern Madhya Pradesh," said Divya E Surendran, a meteorologist with IMD Bhopal.

Indore: Indore city continued to see yet another bout of heavy rainfall, which resulted in bringing down the heat by 8 degrees and increasing water woes, on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, the day began with humid conditions, but by 1pm, dark clouds gathered, and by 2:30 pm, intense rain lashed several parts of the city. The showers continued intermittently for about an hour, bringing down the temperature and offering brief relief from the sultry weather. According to meteorologists, more rain and gusty winds are in store, and this weather pattern may persist for another two to three days.

The impact of the rain was evident in a sharp drop in both day and night temperatures over the past 48 hours. Day temperature, which were at 40.8 degrees Celsius, dropped to 32.4 degrees Celsius—a fall of 8 degrees. Night temperature dropped significantly from 24.5 degrees Celsius during the first week of May to 19.2 degrees Celsius on Tuesday. A total of 24.1 mm of rainfall was reported in the city on Tuesday till 8:30 pm. The city recorded 26 mm of rainfall on Monday and 70.2 mm on Sunday.

Despite this decrease in temperature, post-rain humidity added to people's discomfort. More concerning, the downpour once again exposed the shortcomings in the city's civic infrastructure. Several major roads were waterlogged, and power supply was disrupted in many areas for hours. Residents reported that electricity helplines remained unreachable during the outage. Strong winds also caused branches to fall and posters to tear across the city. Areas such as Chhatribagh, Hemu Kalani Square, Palsikar Colony, Ahilyashram, MR-10, Khajrana, and Vijay Nagar experienced severe waterlogging, slowing down traffic and causing jams once vehicles returned to the roads after the rain subsided.

The unseasonal showers have already crossed 3.75 inches this month, an unusual figure for May, well ahead of the monsoon. So far, the city has received nearly 96 mm of rainfall in May—an unusual occurrence, considering the monsoon is still over a month away. This is also the highest monthly rainfall recorded in May in a decade. The sudden rain affected wedding functions and damaged standing crops like onions and green vegetables, worrying local farmers.

As per IMD Bhopal, two cyclonic circulations and a trough linked to a western disturbance are behind the change in weather. Thunderstorms and rain may continue till May 10, with temperature expected to rise gradually thereafter. "The storm system is expected to persist until May 10, gradually shifting to central and eastern Madhya Pradesh," said Divya E Surendran, a meteorologist with IMD Bhopal.