Dists enjoy downpour, mild rain forecast for city

CHENNAI: With several districts of Tamil Nadu receiving mild showers on Wednesday night and Thursday morning, bringing the mercury down, the public heaved a sigh of relief with heatwave conditions receding.

The light to moderate rains were received in Tirunelveli, Dindigul, Salem, the Nilgiris, Kanniyakumari, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Coimbatore, Chengalpattu, Tiruvallur and Tiruvarur on Thursday. Some parts of Chennai also received light showers during the morning hours.

Until Thursday morning, Mayiladathurai received the highest of 7 cm of rainfall, followed by 5 cm in Cuddalore and Madurai. During the day, Salem recorded 2.3 cm of rainfall and Dindigul 1.4 cm.

The mild rains have brought down the maximum temperature to around 35-36 degrees Celsius and the minimum temperature to around 26-27 degrees Celsius. Karur reported the highest maximum temperature of 41.5°C, followed by 41.4°C in Erode. Namakkal reported a maximum temperature of 39.5°C and Madurai 39.4°C.

For the next 48 hours, light to moderate rain is expected at a few places with thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds with speeds reaching 30-40 kmph. Meanwhile, heavy rain is likely to occur at isolated places over the Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Tirupur, Dindigul, Karur, Erode, Namakkal, Salem, Dharmapuri and Kallakurichi.

Until May 13, the maximum temperature is likely to be near normal over many places and about 2-3°C at a few places in interior Tamil Nadu. The interior districts are expected to report a maximum temperature of 37-39°C over the plains and about 33-37°C in the coastal areas.

In Chennai, the sky condition will be partly cloudy with light to moderate rains in some parts on Friday. The minimum and maximum temperatures are likely to be 28-29°C and 35-36°C respectively.