Mumbai records hottest March day since 2021; yellow alert for today

At Santacruz, the city’s base weather station, the maximum temperature soared to 40 degrees Celsius, 7.6 degrees above normal

Mumbai: A prolonged and stronger anticyclonic circulation in the Arabian Sea, along with easterly winds, resulted in the suburbs experiencing a severe heatwave on Tuesday, as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) upgraded its warning to an orange alert from a yellow alert.

In less than a week, Mumbai has experienced two heatwaves. (Raju Shinde/HT Photo)

At Santacruz, the city’s base weather station, the maximum temperature soared to 40 degrees Celsius, 7.6 degrees above normal. It was also the highest daytime temperature since 2021, when the maximum temperature stood at 40.9 degrees Celsius on March 28. The hottest March day on record was on March 28, 1956, when the maximum temperature touched 41.7 degrees Celsius.

When the maximum temperature departure is 6 degrees above normal, the IMD declares a heatwave; 6.4 degrees above normal is classified as a severe heatwave.

In the north Konkan region that includes Mumbai, Dahanu also experienced a severe heatwave, logging a maximum temperature of 40 degrees Celsius (9.6 degrees Celsius above normal). A heatwave was recorded in Thane, with daytime temperatures reaching 39.2 degrees Celsius, 5.4 degrees above normal.

Within Mumbai, based on readings from IMD’s seven automatic weather stations, Ram Mandir for the second consecutive day recorded a high of 42.4 degrees Celsius, followed by Vikhroli (41.6 degrees Celsius), Byculla (40 degrees Celsius), Bandra (39.7 degrees Celsius), Vidyavihar (39.5 degrees Celsius), Chembur (38.8 degrees Celsius) and Dahisar (38.8 degrees Celsius).

South Mumbai, however, escaped a heatwave, with a maximum temperature of 35.4 degrees Celsius, 5.4 degrees above normal. However, nighttime temperature was 2.3 degrees above normal at 24.5 degrees Celsius, compared with 21.6 degrees Celsius in the suburbs, which was 1.5 degrees above normal.

Senior IMD scientist Sushma Nair reiterated that the significant increase in temperature was due to the anticyclonic circulation in the Arabian Sea near south Gujarat and neighbouring areas, including Mumbai. “It has become stronger over the last few days and has also lasted longer. Easterly winds that are causing the sea breeze to set in late are adding to the heat,” said Nair.

The IMD has issued a yellow alert, warning of heatwave conditions in isolated pockets in Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, Raigad and Ratnagiri on Wednesday.

In less than a week, Mumbai has experienced two heatwaves. On March 5, Mumbai experienced its first heat wave of the season—also the earliest in at least a decade—with the maximum temperature touching 38.9 degrees Celsius.