The drop in the mercury levels as a result of heavy rain and thunderstorm in the early hours of Monday brought welcome relief from the sweltering summer heat to people of the city and district.
The oppressive heat during the past few weeks coupled with power cuts has got the people on their nerves. Many wondered whether the monsoon had arrived going by the sound and fury of the late night rain.
“The rain is due to cumulonimbus clouds (Cb clouds) and it has got nothing to do with the arrival of the monsoon. There is no storm brewing in the Bay of Bengal. While the rainfall recorded at Waltair was 77.3 mm, it was only 18.2 mm during the last 24 hours ending 8.30 a.m. on Monday,” Director of the Cyclone Warning Centre (CWC) K. Ramachandra Rao said.
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A CWC bulletin issued in the evening has, however, cautioned fishermen of strong surface winds from a westerly direction with speed reaching 45 to 55 KMPH along coastal Andhra Pradesh during the next 24 hours, beginning 6 p.m. on Monday.
The South West monsoon has covered parts of Karnataka and entered Chennai and conditions are favourable for its further advancement, according to the IMD website.