As persistent rains pounded the northeast, Meghalaya’s Mawsynram, India’s wettest spot, recorded an incredible 1003.6 mm of rain in 24 hours ending 8:30 a.m. on Friday, the most ever on a June day, according to the IMD, while Cherrapunji received 972 mm.
Cherrapunji, which is also one of the wettest spots on the planet and is only 10 kilometres from Mawsynram, had the wettest June since 1995 and the third wettest in 122 years.
In the 24 hours leading up to 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Mawsynram received 710.6 mm of rain.
Before Friday’s record rainfall, it had received 944.7 mm of precipitation on 7 June, 1966, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) data showed.
Mawsynram is at present the wettest place in India, with an average annual rainfall of 11802.4 mm (average of the 1974-2022 period). Cherrapunji receives 11359.4 mm of rainfall in a year (average of the 1971-2020 period).
One of the wettest places in the world, Cherrapunji has recorded more than 800 mm of precipitation on a June day on nine occasions since the IMD started keeping records in 1901. Till Friday, Cherrapunji has received a total of 4081.3 mm rainfall this month.
In 24 hours ending 8:30 am on Wednesday, the town nestled in the East Khasi Hills gauged a copious 811.2 mm of rainfall.
On 16 June, 1995, Cherrapunji logged 1563.3 mm of rainfall. A day before, on 15 June, 1995, it received 930 mm of precipitation.
The spell of extreme rainfall is likely to continue for one or two days. Thereafter, the intensity will decrease, Das said. The IMD has issued a red alert, warning of very heavy to extremely heavy rainfall in Meghalaya and Assam in the next two days.
