At 38.2°C, city sees hottest October day in over a decade

Mumbai experienced its second heat wave in less than a week on Monday, with the maximum temperature in the suburbs soaring to 38.2°C, 5.1 degrees above normal. The city had recorded a heat wave earlier on October 9, when the maximum temperature touched 37.8°C, 4.7 degrees above normal. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), a heat wave is declared if the temperature deviates more than 4.5°C from normal.

Monday’s maximum temperature was the second-highest recorded in October, after the all-time high of 38.6°C recorded on October 17, 2015. The Colaba observatory registered a maximum temperature of 36.5°C, which was 3.9 degrees above normal.

October feels like peak summer: Mumbai sizzles at 38°C, festive shoppers seek refuge in cool drinksMumbai records second heat wave in less than a week

October heat in Mumbai is infamous. However, a deviation of 5.1 degrees from the normal is high. It’s worrisome because in the morning around 9am when people go for work, the temperature was 32-33 degrees, and it didn’t dissipate even at 7pm,” said KS Hosalikar, former head of IMD Mumbai.

Hosalikar said it was too early to establish a link between the current temperatures and the emergence of a Super El Niño. However, he warned that the winter months were likely to be warm, with potential implications for the summer of 2027, as per global climate forecasts.