Mumbai sees sharp rainfall slowdown in August after deluge in July

A brief shower hits commuters at Bandra railway station on August 5. PIC/ATUL KAMBLE

The first weeks of July and August stood in stark contrast, with 853 mm and 1017.5 mm being recorded in Santacruz and Colaba, respectively, in the former period but only 83.7 mm and 36.2 mm reported at these spots in the latter.

The India Meteorological Department, meanwhile, has indicated light to moderate rainfall for Mumbai and neighbouring districts this week, with a green alert for Mumbai, Palghar, Thane, and Ratnagiri, Raigad, and Sindhudurg districts.

In the first week of August, Mumbai's Colaba weather station recorded merely 36.2 mm of rainfall, accounting for approximately seven to eight per cent of the month's average seasonal rainfall (450 mm), and Santacruz recorded 83.7 mm of rainfall, accounting for 13 to 14 per cent of August's average rainfall (620 mm).

The sky over the Arabian Sea is veiled by clouds at Bandstand in Bandra West. PIC/ATUL KAMBLE

On an average, Mumbai recorded 11.9 of rainfall per day throughout the first week of August, according to figures from IMD. In contrast, within the first week of July, parts of Mumbai recorded over 300 mm of rainfall in a short span of 48 hours. In those seven days, it received 80 per cent of the month's average annual rainfall.

Southwest monsoon

While IMD indicated a weak southwest monsoon for India under the effect of El Niño this year, predicting about 90 per cent of the annual average rainfall, by the end of July, Mumbai recorded unprecedented rain, with Colaba already accounting for 77.5 per cent of Mumbai's total rainfall expected during the monsoon season, and Santacruz recorded 82.44 per cent. However, due to weak rainfall during the past week, this figure has barely advanced. As of August 8, Colaba has received 79.24 per cent of the seasonal average rainfall, and Santacruz has received 86.1%.

Average rainfall in surplus

According to IMD, this still indicates surplus rainfall. By the same time last year, Colaba had recorded only 47.26 per cent of seasonal rainfall, and Santacruz had recorded 58.72 per cent. Colaba now has a departure of 14.8 per cent, and Santacruz of 24.7 per cent.

[popcorn number="1017.5 mm" desc="Rainfall recorded by the Santacruz observatory in first week of July" class="Default"]

[popcorn number="36.2 mm" desc="Total rainfall recorded in Colaba in first week of August" class="Default"]