Mumbai is preparing for a potentially turbulent weekend as a low-pressure system over the east-central Arabian Sea threatens to intensify into a depression within 36 hours. The India Meteorological Department has issued an Orange Alert for Mumbai, Thane, and Palghar, while Red alerts blanket coastal Maharashtra and Goa districts.
Cyclone risk rising off the coast
Mumbai has already felt the impact, with pre-monsoon showers bringing 27 mm of rain at Santacruz and 10 mm at Colaba on Wednesday night. Temperatures dropped to 22.5°C at Santacruz, five degrees below normal, offering some relief from the heat.
This May has been unusually wet, with rainfall over 100mm recorded at key observatories, around 700% above average. A low-pressure system brewing over the Arabian Sea, driven by intense convection and an upper-air cyclonic circulation, is expected to track northward and could intensify into a cyclonic storm. If it does, it will be named Cyclone Shakthi. While no cyclone warning has been issued as of now, the IMD warns of very heavy to extremely heavy rains along Maharashtra’s coast and Goa.
Beyond Mumbai, Red alerts are in effect for Raigad and Ratnagiri, while Karnataka and Kerala prepare for heavy rains and the approaching southwest monsoon, expected in the next two to three days. Fishermen are advised to avoid the western seas due to hazardous conditions until May 27.
