Tropical summers: Rainy days ahead!

Features
  • shutterstock.com
Published on 2022-01-21 at 10:48 by Rachel Maureen Silvio
If there is one thing that we will remember from the beginning of this year, between the announcement of health restrictions that extend until the end of March, the third dose of mandatory vaccine and the uncertainty of the resumption of classes ... it is undoubtedly this unbearable heat that will have marked us all! We are experiencing one of the hottest and most humid summers with temperatures rising to over 35° in some places.

Unbearable temperatures, high humidity, atmospheric instability favoring the development of convective clouds with risks of cyclone and torrential rain... As you can see, January, February and March are hottest months of the calendar. In Mauritius, the month of January is in peak summer. This means quite hot temperatures and frequent rainfall. In general, temperatures can climb up to 30 or 32 ° during the day, ideal temperatures for boat trips or relaxing days at the beach simply relaxing under the shade of filaos and diving in the clear turquoise waters, deliciously warmed by the summer sun while the temperature drops to 26 or 27 ° in the evening where it is relatively warm, enough to enjoy dinner under the stars.

But, high temperatures mean humidity and humidity also means atmospheric depressions! It is the most favorable time of the year for the formation of cyclones. Every year, Mauritius faces 2 or 3 cyclones, whether they are direct or indirect threats. But with global warming, cyclones are less and less intense and generally lose power before reaching the island...

Nowadays, the island may very well go into a class 2 alert while in some places the weather seems to be just beautiful. But it is not the cyclones that worry the population today. It is the heavy showers that fall on the island. This can last for days or even weeks in some places. The risk of floods is frequent and they sometimes take us by surprise. A particularity in Mauritius is that it can rain codes on the central plateau while on the capital of Port-Louis, the rate of rainfall is 0. Last Sunday for example, while the south of the island was watered, the north had not recorded a single drop of rain.

Again, Mauritius would be under the threat of two low-pressure systems, one of which, according to the weather forecast, is intensifying this weekend. The other would also be likely to develop from January 25. Mother Nature does not seem to have finished with us because the weather station still predicts bad weather in the coming months. 

Despite the forecast, the weather is still unpredictable. Don't be fooled. It can be a beautiful day in the morning and then in the blink of an eye it starts to rain dangerously. So if there's one accessory you should always have with you, it's an umbrella.