Even as Mumbaikars enjoy the cool weather, doctors warn of diseases like typhoid. Though these light showers brought respite from the heat, it also caused inconvenience to residents, especially the working class and those with respiratory illnesses.
Mumbai saw sudden rainfall on Saturday morning. Pics/Satej Shinde
After a few days of intense heat, Mumbai on Saturday woke up to a cold breeze and pleasant weather. While some parts witnessed moderate rainfall, a few areas in the Western suburbs experienced heavy rainfall in the morning. The IMD has issued a yellow alert.
Though these light showers brought respite from the heat, it also caused inconvenience to residents, especially the working class and those with respiratory illnesses. “I travel from Vasai to Andheri for my work. This unpredictable rainfall, that too in the month of May, is inconveniencing me. Weather forecasts are not always accurate, so one is not prepared while leaving home,” said 29-year-old Vaibhav Malkar.
Mumbai saw sudden rainfall on Saturday morning. Pics/Satej Shinde
“Rains helps settle the dust and reduces pollution, and this brings relief to people like me who suffer from various respiratory problems such as asthma and bronchitis. But these early rains are surely a sign of major climate change and can bring along other diseases,” said Rasika Shah, another Mumbaikar.
According to IMD (India Meteorological Department), these light showers will continue for another five days with day-time temperatures ranging between 27 and 33° Celsius across the southern and central parts of India. Santa Cruz recorded a maximum temperature of 34.4° Celsius and minimum of 27.9° Celsius, while Colaba recorded maximum and minimum temperatures of 34.2 and 26.2° Celsius respectively. As per the Central Pollution Board (CPCB), the air quality index of the city throughout the day was under 80, placing it in the “satisfactory” category. Other areas of the MMR such as Thane and Navi Mumbai also reported satisfactory AQI levels with 61 and 68 respectively.
Doctors also expressed concern stating that these early rains come with several diseases. “Skin and eye irritation, stomach-related health issues, viral infections — these are typical rainy-season related health problems. However, considering that this is a vacation season and people often eat outside, these sudden rains can lead to typhoid and food poisoning as well as increase water contamination levels, especially in terms of street food,” said Dr Abhijit Kadam, who runs a clinic in Bhandup. On the flip side, doctors also stated that the pre-monsoon rains have helped to keep the temperatures low resulting in negligible number of heat-stroke cases across the state. “This year, as it rained in April and continues even now in several parts of the state, the overall temperatures remained quite lower. We did have days of 46 and 47° Celsius, but they were few. Thus, no major heat stroke cases have been reported this year so far,” said Dr Girish Jatkar, dean of Vasantrao Naik Government Medical College of Yavatmal. Meanwhile, the IMD has pointed at thunderstorms accompanied with lightning, light to moderate rainfall and gusty winds (40-50kmph) at isolated places for the next five days, with light to moderate rain / thundershowers on the coming Tuesday.
80
AQI was reported through out the day, placing city under “satisfactory” range
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