Palakkad: An unusual October is set to end for Keralites. Never before have they been witness to or heard of such rains as were experienced throughout this month. The weathermen say Kerala recorded the highest rainfall in 120 years between October 1 and 28 due to recurring cyclonic circulations and unexpected changes in the weather pattern.
Kerala received 567 millimetre of rainfall between October 1 and 28, going past the 1999 northeast monsoon rain record of 566 mm, said Rajiv Erikulam of the State Disaster Management Authority.
As per the India Meteorological Department (IMD) statistics, Kerala had received heavy rainfalls of over 500 mm in 1932, 1999 and 2002.
The state had received summer showers in excess in January this year.
During the past eight retreating monsoon seasons, Kerala received above average rainfall in 2014, 2015 and 2019. Kerala had received more than 85% of its share from the northeast monsoon this year even before the arrival of the system on October 27.
Latest update
It was earlier predicted that a low-pressure area formed over Bay of Bengal off the Sri Lankan coast and the cyclonic circulation over Arabian Sea would whip up a cyclonic storm causing widespread rain in Kerala on Friday night and Saturday. The weathermen later noticed a change due to the weakened intraseasonal atmospheric variability, also known as Madden-Julian Oscillation, over the Arabian Sea.
[The Madden-Julian Oscillation or (MJO) is the major fluctuation in tropical weather on weekly to monthly timescales.]
The weather department, however, issued a rain alert to Kerala till November 2. The alert was issued following the slow movement of a low-pressure system over the Gulf of Mannar.
The IMD was also expecting the state's eastern districts to receive heavy rains on Sunday and Monday.
Tamil Nadu, meanwhile, remained cloudy, and considering the opening of the shutters of the Mullaperiyar Dam, Kerala has adopted red-alert-like precautions. Extremely heavy rains have triggered several landslides in Sri Lanka also, reports said.
