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Monsoon to arrive in Kerala in 24 hours, heavy to very heavy rainfall expected: IMD
The IMD issued a red alert for Thiruvananthapuram district on Friday evening after heavy rain disrupted normal life.
Monsoon is set to arrive by Sunday, May 25, in Kerala as the state has been witnessing heavy rainfall over the past two days, according to the India Meteorological Department. Heavy to heavy rainfall is expected due to strong westerly winds.
“Monsoon onset likely over Kerala in the next 2 days. Strong westerlies may bring very heavy to extremely heavy rain. Stay alert and follow advice from the authorities. Check the district wise warnings,” said the weather office’s Trivandrum unit in a post on X on Friday.
This is the earliest date of monsoon onset over Kerala after 2009 when it was set in over Kerala on May 23. Considering the onset dates from 1975, the earliest onset of monsoon over Kerala occurred in 1990 (May 19, 1990), which was 13 days before the normal onset date.
Earlier, the weather department had expected monsoon to arrive in Kerala by May 27, with a model error of plus/minus four days. However, it is now expected by Sunday, which is five days earlier than last year. In 2024, the monsoon hit Kerala on May 30.
"The conditions are favourable and the monsoon is advancing as per the schedule. If conditions remain conducive then it is likely to hit the Kerala coast by 25 May, as predicted by us," Live Mint quoted a senior IMD official as saying.
Red alert in Thiruvananthapuram
The IMD issued a red alert for Thiruvananthapuram district on Friday evening after heavy rains disrupted normal life. The alert was issued for three hours due to the possibility of heavy rainfall along with surface winds reaching 50 kmph, reported PTI.
An orange alert was also issued for Thrissur, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, and Kasaragod on Friday.
Kannur and Kasaragod will remain under a red alert from May 24 to 26, and districts such as Malappuram, Kozhikode, and Wayanad will remain under red alert on May 25 and 26, the PTI report added.
According to the IMD, the conditions are also likely to become favourable for further advance of southwest monsoon over some more parts of South Arabian Sea, remaining parts of Maldives and Comorin area; some parts of Lakshadweep area, Kerala, some parts of Karnataka & Tamil Nadu; some more parts South & Central Bay of Bengal, North Bay of Bengal and some parts of Northeastern states during the same period.
