Tardy monsoon makes this wettest-ever July for Mumbai

Despite witnessing the most delayed onset of the monsoon this year Mumbai recorded the highest rainfall ever since being recorded for the month of July meteorologists said on Wednesday This year the city recorded the second fastest 2000 mm rainfall since its onset BMC chief I S Chahal has declared a holiday for primary secondary and higher secondary schools and for colleges in the cityAccording to BMC the India Meteorological Department Mumbai has issued Extremely Heavy Rainfall Warning Red Alert for Mumbai City and suburbs till Thursday afternoonIn view of this considering the safety of students Municipal Commissioner Chahal has declared a holiday for schools and colleges in Mumbai City and Suburbs on ThursdayThe Andheri Subway was closed for the third time in seven daysThe BMC has requested citizens to stay alert and indoors if possible The IMD has issued a red alert for Mumbai and adjoining areas for July 27 Meanwhile a few districts including Ratnagiri Pune Satara Gadchiroli and Chandrapur remain on red alert Tuesday July 25 marked one month since the onset of the monsoon over Mumbai and adjoining areas adding it to the list of the most delayed onset of the season The official onset date of the monsoon over Mumbai is June 11 In the 24 hours ending at 830 am on Wednesday the IMDs Santacruz observatory recorded rainfall of 86 mm while Colaba recorded 45 mm Between 830 am and 530 pm on Wednesday the Santacruz observatory recorded 789 mm of rain while the Colaba observatory saw 109 mmWaterloggingAs a result of the downpour several roads witnessed waterlogging and traffic had to be diverted Traffic was diverted to SV Road after the Andheri Subway was closed at 330 pm for the third time in seven days The subway was also closed on July 21 and 22 There were also complaints of water logging near the Sion signal on the road outside Kurla railway station West and between Aarey market and Royal Palms Evening traffic had to be diverted from Aarey Colony Unit VII Veera Desai Road Andheri West Kamani Kurla West Lal Bahadur Shastri Road as these areas witnessed waterlogging As per BMC records there were also complaints of 12 tree falls in Mumbaimdashthree in the city seven in the western suburbs and two in the eastern suburbsFrom July 1 to July 26 up to 530 pm IMDs Santacruz observatory recorded a rainfall of 15127 mm whereas 1080 mm was recorded at Colaba during the same period In 2022 1244 mm rainfall was recorded in July while in 2019 14648 mm was recorded and 14685mm during the month of 2014 The highest record for the month however was set in 2020 with 15026mm of rain This was surpassed on Wednesday2000 mm rainMumbai recorded 2015 mm rainfall at the Santacruz observatory from June 1 to July 26 up to 230 pm crossing the benchmark in 56 days on July 26 In 2021 the city received a total 2000 mm of rainfall on July 22 in 52 days since its onset The year 1965 saw the thirdfastest recordmdash2000 mm after 60 days on July 30 followed by 61 days in 2005 when the benchmark was crossed on July 31 Thane city has received a total of 200281 mm of rainfall so farWeather systemldquoAmidst doubts of a poor monsoon the beginning for Mumbai has been good However we are not very optimistic about August because later in the month the El Nino phenomenon is likely to develop and might affect the intensity of the Indian monsoon to some extent in the central parts and southern peninsular region of the country Considering this there is a possibility that even the normal August rainfall for Mumbai and adjoining areas may be affectedrdquo said Rajesh Kapadia of private weather blog Vagaries of the WeatherAccording to Kapadia on Thursday the rain could be of less intensity as compared to what the city witnessed on Wednesday ldquoAlso starting Friday and through the weekend there will be a marked decrease in the rain intensity and frequency with on and off sunny intervalsrdquo Kapadia said2015mmRainfall received till 2 pm on Wednesday12No of complaints about tree falls