Temperature falls as Vayu brings rain to Mumbai and Navi Mumbai

MUMBAI: Parts of the city witnessed light rain while Thane and Navi Mumbai got showers as Cyclone Vayu made its way up the Arabian Sea on Tuesday towards Gujarat. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast heavy rains at isolated places for Wednesday.

Weathermen said these were typical pre-monsoon conditions, and there was unlikely to be a continuous downpour.“Vayu moved further northwards with a speed of about 17kmph on Tuesday. It has intensified into a Severe Cyclonic Storm and is located about 350 km west-northwest of Goa, 410 km south-southwest of Mumbai (Maharashtra),” said an IMD statement on Tuesday.
Weather officials said the storm is not likely to be a direct threat to Mumbai, but will bring rain and strong winds. As the cyclone moved closer to the city, rain fell in areas like Ghatkopar, Borivli, Dahisar and parts of Thane and Navi Mumbai on Tuesday afternoon as well as night. Warnings for fishermen are in place for the Maharashtra and Goa coast.
Gusting in with Vayu was some bad news: owing to the cyclone, a hiatus is expected in the already delayed monsoon reaching the city. “This weather system will dissipate by June 14 and the next surge of monsoon is expected to be around June 14. There will be little delay in monsoon,” said Shubhangi Bhute from IMD Mumbai. The rains officially arrive in the city by June 10.
The IMD observatories at Colaba and Santa Cruz did not record rain in the 12 hours from 8.30am on Tuesday. Traces are not recorded. However, in the 24 hours before (8.30am Monday-8.30am Tuesday), the rainfall at Colaba was 25.2mm and Santa Cruz 40.2mm. The rain brought some relief from the high temperature of over 36°C over the past few days. On Tuesday, maximum temperature at Colaba was 33.5°C and Santa Cruz 34.6°C.