Sumatra squalls in the Strait of Malacca and bring widespread thundery showers with gusty winds over Singapore during the pre-dawn hours and morning
For Singaporeans, the beginning of May means a luxurious extra-long weekend comprising two public holidays.
While looking forward to the rest, we may also want to note that the warm and wet weather we had in Apr will continue through the first half of the month.
Source: Facebook
Thus, the long weekend will see thundery showers in the morning every day.
In a weather advisory on Friday (29 Apr), the Meteorological Service Singapore (MSS) said the inter-monsoon conditions over Singapore, which we experienced throughout Apr, will persist into May.
The monsoon rain band will be close to the equatorial Southeast Asia region during the first two weeks of May.
That means thundery showers will be expected on most days in this period.
The thundery showers will be of short duration and moderate to heavy in intensity.
On some days, they’ll happen between the afternoon and evening, MSS said. There’ll also be frequent lightning.
However, on several days, particularly in early May, Sumatra squalls could develop in the Strait of Malacca.
These might be induced by low-pressure systems over the South China Sea bringing a shift in the low-level winds.
The low-level winds, which will typically be light and variable in direction, may thus strengthen and blow from the south-west or west.
The Sumatra squalls will cause widespread thundery showers and gusty winds to occur in the morning, including the pre-dawn hours.
According to the four-day outlook from MSS, the upcoming long weekend will be wet in the morning.
Thundery showers will pour down during the pre-dawn hours and early morning on all four days, with winds from the west and south-west.
Source: National Environment Agency
So if you’re planning to sleep in, expect to wake up to a wet Singapore.
Overall, May’s rainfall should be near to normal over most parts of the island, MSS said.
Unsurprisingly, the warm conditions of late Apr will stick around in the first half of May.
On most days, daily temperatures are forecast to be between 24 and 34°C.
The maximum temperature might even hit a sweltering 35°C on a few days.
However, the daily minimum temperature may go down to a low of about 23°C on some days, when it’s rainy.
In a wrap-up of Apr’s weather, the MSS said the Apr showers were more numerous in the first half of the month, compared with the second.
While half of Singapore recorded above-normal rainfall – mainly the east, south and south-west – parts of the island also received below-normal rainfall.
Source: NEA
In Sentosa, for example, the rainfall was 78% above average, but Jurong West reported 57% below-average rainfall.
MSS also noted that on 17 Apr, thundery showers began in the afternoon and continued into the evening and night, leading to the highest rainfall for the month recorded in Sengkang — a daily total of 91.1mm.
Despite all the rain, it was generally warm in Apr, MSS said.
On 13 days, the daily maximum temperature went above 34°C, with 35°C or more recorded on seven of these days.
Folks in Admiralty were subjected to the monthly high of 36.8°C on 1 Apr.
In Sembawang, however, people enjoyed a breezy minimum temperature of 22.2°C on 9 Apr.
Though we have to expect wet and warm weather in early May, it’s nothing new for us since it’s been like that for the whole of Apr.
As the month kicks off in the middle of a long weekend, do plan your morning activities accordingly in expectation of wet weather.
Hopefully, it shouldn’t affect your enjoyment of the holidays too much.
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Featured image adapted from BeeLee Lim on Facebook.
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