Highest single-day rainfall of season, yellow alert for today

Panaji: Parts of the state witnessed intense spells of light to moderate pre-monsoon rainfall on Sunday, with Goa recording an average 22.4mm rainfall in a single day up to Sunday morning.“The showers marked the strongest pre-monsoon activity of the season so far,” said meteorologist and retired chief scientist at the NIO, M R Ramesh Kumar. He attributed the rainfall to strong atmospheric convection combined with high moisture content over the region, leading to thunderstorms and short but intense spells of rain.The rain gauge station at Dabolim recorded the highest rainfall in Goa during the last 24 hours at 52 mm (2 inches). Other stations also reported substantial rainfall, with Mormugao receiving 42.8 mm and Panaji recording 31 mm during the latest spell. Overall, Quepem has emerged as the wettest station of the pre-monsoon season with a cumulative total of 116.8 mm rainfall so far since March 1, followed by Margao, which has recorded 101.8 mm.As pre-monsoon showers swept across the state on Sunday, a noticeable drop in temperatures was recorded by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Max temperature fell by 3 degrees celsius in 24 hours in Panaji as the state capital recorded 31 degrees celsius and the minimum temperature settled at 24.7 degrees celsius. Mormugao recorded an even sharper dip, with the minimum temperature falling to 23.3 degrees celsius, nearly 3.8 degrees below normal.High humidity levels accompanied the showers, with relative humidity reaching 100% in Panaji and 98% in Mormugao.The IMD said the ongoing pre-monsoon pattern is likely to continue over the coming days, with further spells of light to moderate rainfall expected in parts of Goa. The IMD has issued a yellow alert for May 25, warning of thunderstorms across the state.