Evening rain brings relief after sweltering afternoon

Nagpur: The city saw another sharp weather swing on Friday, with intense afternoon heat giving way to strong winds, dust storms and light rain by evening. Less than a day after showers brought temporary relief, the city remained under clear skies and blistering conditions through the afternoon before gusty winds swept across several areas, lowering temperatures slightly as dark clouds gathered. Some parts of the city recorded 5.8mm rainfall.This pattern of hot days followed by evening thunderstorm activity has become common across Vidarbha in recent days. Residents faced harsh sunshine and dry heat during the day, only to see cloudy skies and powerful winds later.The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said thunderstorm activity with lightning and gusty winds is likely to continue across Vidarbha over the next two to three days. Several districts are under yellow and orange alerts. Wind speeds of 40-50 kmph are expected in many places, with isolated areas likely to see 50-60 kmph winds. Nagpur is under a yellow alert for the next two days with thunderstorm warnings.Nagpur recorded a maximum temperature of 39.2 degrees Celsius on Friday, around 3 degrees below normal despite the strong daytime heat. The city also logged Vidarbha's lowest minimum temperature at 21 degrees Celsius, reflecting the effect of recent rain and moisture.In the rest of Vidarbha, Washim was the hottest at 42.8 degrees Celsius, followed by Akola at 42.1 degrees Celsius. Yavatmal recorded the highest rainfall in the region at 21 mm in the previous 24 hours. The IMD said rainfall across Vidarbha remained isolated but moderate.Weather officials said multiple systems are influencing the region, including a trough from the Arabian Sea towards Madhya Pradesh and another stretching across Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. These are helping trigger thunderstorms over central India.The forecast says isolated light rain and thunderstorms may continue till Sunday in Nagpur, Wardha, Bhandara, Gondia, Chandrapur and Gadchiroli. The IMD has also said maximum temperatures across Vidarbha are likely to rise gradually by 2-4 degrees Celsius once the current spell weakens.