The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an "orange alert" for Mumbai, Palghar, Thane, Raigad, Ratnagiri, and Sindhudurg on Monday, June 20, predicting a strong chance of "heavy to very heavy rain" at isolated places. At the same time, the S-band doppler weather radar (DWR) in Colaba has not been operational for the past four days, reports stated.
According to accounts, while the DWR was installed in Mumbai in 2010 for weather surveillance of up to 400 km from the coastline, it has remained defunct in many instances. These include last year when monsoons made an early arrival in Mumbai, when Cyclone Ockhi went through the city's coast, a few hours before cyclone Nisarga made landfall in Maharashtra, amongst other days when extreme rains were seen in Mumbai.
Based on narratives, however, a spokesperson from IMD's regional forecasting centre in Mumbai claimed that the DWR is down for regular maintenance.
On the other hand, while the official date of the onset of Mumbai rains was June 11, the city has only witnessed patches of rainfall in the past few days. It was on Sunday, June 19, that the first low-visibility downpour transpired in isolated areas.
It has been reported that since Mumbai has seen 115.3 mm of rain so far this month, there is a deficit of 167.3 mm for the month to date.
An IMD spokesperson was quoted in narratives elaborating on how heavy downpours are anticipated in Mumbai on Monday. Therefore, citizens have been advised to take precautions while venturing out. The spokesperson added that over the next two to three days, Mumbai may receive nearly 130 mm of rainfall, which whilst isn't alarming by the city's standards, could result in waterlogging.
Accounts have been doing the rounds that in the past 24 hours (8 am - 8 am), Mumbai has seen higher rains in contrast to the suburbs. With the island city registering 43 mm rains, the eastern and western suburbs registered 10 mm and 15 mm respectively.
Moreover, amid the rainfall, Mumbai's air quality according to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR) on Monday morning was 29 which is the "good category".
The IMD's forecast for the next 24 hours states, "Generally cloudy sky with moderate rain in city and suburbs. Possibility of heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places." Similarly, Mumbaikars can be relived since the maximum temperature will be 28 degrees Celsius, while the minimum temperature will be 24 degrees Celsius, according to the forecast.
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