Better equipment could have helped: weather bloggers

Many felt the city was caught off-guard with no indication of such very heavy spells of rain, resulting in flooding everywhere. Weather bloggers, who have been continuously monitoring the changes, sai

Many felt the city was caught off-guard with no indication of such very heavy spells of rain, resulting in flooding everywhere. Weather bloggers, who have been continuously monitoring the changes, said while the northeast monsoon could spring a surprise with heavy rain over a short period like a localised phenomena, it was still possible to have at least better indications if the city had better equipment.

K Srikanth, a weather blogger, said weather models do not always pick up events like what was witnessed on Sunday. “But there is a possibility to have some indications of such events at least a little in advance if we have a mesoscale weather model which could predict in smaller detail. Even then, it will be difficult to predict the exact quantum of rainfall which could be expected,” he said. He noted that 2021 itself had more rainfall and the soil saturation was already high in the city.

Sai Prasath Janardhanan, another weather blogger, said: “There is a chance of knowing about such events at least 4-6 hours in advance if we had high performing radars.”