Rain, thunderstorms to lash several states today; heatwave alert continues

Heavy rain likely in Arunachal, Sikkim; Delhi to see cloudy skies with maximum temperatures hitting 41 degrees Celsius

Delhi residents woke up to a pleasant morning on Saturday after heavy rainfall during the evening on April 17. The maximum temperature on Friday was over 40 degrees Celsius, but rain brought down the temperature considerably. However, respite from the intense heat for a longer duration is unlikely any time soon. 

 

For today, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted mainly cloudy skies in the national capital. The maximum temperature is expected to remain around 39 to 41 degrees Celsius, while the minimum may hover between 20 and 22 degrees Celsius

Heavy rain, thunderstorms likely today

For April 18, heavy rainfall is very likely at isolated places over Arunachal Pradesh and parts of West Bengal and Sikkim.

 

Thunderstorm activity is expected across several states, with varying intensity. Hailstorms are likely at isolated places over Karnataka.

 

Strong thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty winds reaching 40 to 50 kmph are very likely over Assam, Meghalaya, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, interior Karnataka, and parts of Maharashtra, including Madhya Maharashtra and Marathwada.

 

Relatively less intense thunderstorms, with lightning and winds of 30 to 40 kmph, are likely at isolated places over Odisha, Telangana, Gangetic West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, and the northeastern states of Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura.

 

Heatwave and humidity to continue

 

Heatwave conditions are very likely at isolated places over Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rayalaseema and Telangana.

 

Hot and humid weather is expected over Coastal Andhra Pradesh, Coastal Karnataka, Kerala and Mahe, and Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal. Warm night conditions are likely over Odisha.

 

Weather forecast for the weekend

 

Rainfall activity with thunderstorms and gusty winds is expected to continue over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, West Bengal and Sikkim over the next few days, with isolated heavy rainfall spells.

 

Light to moderate rainfall with thunderstorms is also likely over states such as Odisha, Bihar, Telangana, Karnataka, and Maharashtra through April 21.

 

Temperatures across northwest India, including Delhi, may dip slightly today before rising gradually by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius in the coming days.The eastern states may see a gradual rise of 3 to 4 degrees Celsius, while no significant change is expected over most parts of the country.