Mumbai rain updates: Why live alerts were delayed; watch video

Following complaints about delayed weather alerts on Wednesday India Meteorological Department IMD officials said that it is not their responsibility to disseminate extreme weather warnings to the public Instead they send such alerts to district and citylevel disaster management units tasked with informing the massesSunil Kamble head of the IMDrsquos Regional Meteorological Department stated ldquoWe are responsible for issuing weather forecasts and warnings about developing systems However it is not our role to directly send extreme weather alerts to the public via messages We provide this information to city and districtlevel disaster management cells and it is their responsibility to disseminate the alerts to the public The IMD has never had a system in place for directly messaging the publicrdquoSunil Kamble head of the Regional Meteorological Centre in Mumbai at his Colaba office on Thursday PicsAnurag AhireThere had been allegations that on Wednesday that the IMD issued a red alert late sparking confusion across the city Initially an orange alert had been in effect but it was upgraded to a red alert only after heavy rain and thunderstorms had already startedBMC sources said due to the dynamic nature of the weather rainfall often doesnrsquot occur despite the civic body receiving alerts indicating that it will They added that the corporation takes the necessary precautions before sending alerts to the public to avoid creating unnecessary panic which can affect daytoday life Despite repeated attempts Mahesh Narvekar the director of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC disaster control cell could not be reached for commentWeather patternsEmphasising that Mumbai classified as a heavy rainfall zone regularly faces such challenges Kamble said ldquoOur monsoon season spans from June to September During these four months various weather systemsmdashsuch as offshore troughs depressions or upperair cyclonic circulationsmdashaffect the intensity of rainfall These systems bring heavy moderate or light rains depending on their formation Once these systems weaken rainfall intensity decreases For Mumbai an average cumulative rainfall of around 2300 mm is considered normal for the monsoon season This year we are already 500 mm to 600 mm above that markrdquoKamble added ldquoWednesdayrsquos heavy rainfall was caused by an upperair cyclonic circulation over central India with its influence extending to north Maharashtra coupled with an offshore trough over the region This resulted in heavy to very heavy rainfall Historically a downpour of 300 mm or more in September is not unusualmdashitrsquos quite typical for this time of year In fact wersquove experienced more intense weather systems than what we saw on WednesdayrdquoAccording to Kamble the rainfall intensity has now subsided and the IMD is closely monitoring the situation ldquoThe intensity of the rain will begin to taper off by Friday morning unless there are changes in the weather systemrdquo The IMD issues a red alert when rainfall of 200 mm or more is expected within 24 hours while an orange alert is issued for lower amounts ldquoWe also monitor the vertical extent of clouds using Doppler radar If the cloud height exceeds 1015 km the rainfall intensity in that area increases and we issue flash flood alerts However we never issue cloudburst warnings A cloudburst occurs when over 100 mm of rain falls within an hour leading to localised floodingrdquo Kamble explainedRumour worriesKamble also expressed concern over the spread of false weather alerts and exaggerated claims on social media ldquoWe have no control over rumours Despite access to credible information people often rely on posts from random individuals instead of trusting the forecasts issued by trained meteorologists and scientists who rigorously analyse satellite images and radar datardquo he saidHe added ldquoWeather systems are dynamic and can change rapidly Meteorologists often have differing opinions so we consult and reach a consensus before issuing any alerts or forecasts Our forecasts are based on multiple observations and analyses conducted daily In contrast social media posts lack accountability whereas we have a responsibility to provide accurate forecastsrdquo As per the expert monsoon withdrawal for the city and state is expected on October 5 and 10 respectivelylsquoEasy to criticisersquoKamble emphasised the complexity of issuing accurate weather forecasts stating ldquoItrsquos easy for people to criticise but forecasts must be verified and reverified before being released We follow strict protocols and make observations daily to ensure accuracyrdquo