CHENNAI: Chennai sweltered through its hottest day of the summer on Tuesday, with the Meenambakkam weather station at Chennai airport recording 39.1°C, the highest so far this season for the city and 2.4 degrees above normal.
Nungambakkam, the city observatory, recorded 36.2°C, while residents across the capital experienced intense heat combined with oppressive humidity of 70-80%.
The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC), Chennai, has warned that high maximum temperatures along with high humidity are likely to cause discomfort weather over coastal areas of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal till May 2. For Chennai city, the forecast for the next two days indicated 38-39°C, with “hot and humid weather” expected to continue.
On Tuesday, several districts recorded soaring temperatures, with interior regions emerging hotter than the coast. Tiruchy airport was among the hottest locations at 40.5°C, which was 2.3°C above normal. Vellore followed closely at 39.7°C, while Erode touched 39.6°C and 2.1°C above normal. Karur Paramathi recorded 39.2°C, also 2.1°C above normal, while Madurai airport logged 39.0°C.