From heatwave to wet days – but El Nino effects to stay longer

PETALING JAYA: The west coast of Peninsular Malaysia will get more rain as the country moves out of the extreme heatwave that has gripped it over the past few months, say climatologists.

They, however, pointed out that the El Nino effects would continue through April until the rains start lashing in from May.

National Antarctica Research Centre climatologist Prof Datuk Dr Azizan Abu Samah said as long as there are clouds in the sky, late afternoon thunderstorms would bring down temperatures.

“We are now moving out of the extreme heatwave, with temperatures rising to 35°C and above, (but) I do not see these ‘red’ temperatures in the forecast.

“Most forecasts are accurate for about two days, but I can safely say that we are moving out of the extreme heatwave.

“In the west coast states such as Selangor, there will be thunderstorms in the late afternoons.

“If there are no clouds, the temperature will be higher but probably hit just 31°C or so,” said Prof Azizan, adding that cloud seeding might not be of any help now.

Academy of Sciences Malaysia Fellow Prof Dr Fredolin Tangang said Malaysia is now going through the inter-monsoon period until May.

“Typically, we will have thunderstorms in the late afternoon but only in the west coast of the peninsula. In other areas, the rainfall will remain low as the El Nino effects will last through the month of April.

“In the northern states, the rain and clouds, if any, may cool the temperature a bit, but according to forecasts, the El Nino effects will still be dominant in April.

Prof Fredolin said the weather could be influenced by the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) phenomenon, a large-scale weather disturbance that moves from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, crossing Malaysia and Indonesia.

“This appears once in 20 to 60 days and it takes about two weeks to cross the region.

“Depending on the phase, it can enhance or reduce cloud cover and rainfall, elevate or cool the temperature,” he added.

From February to March 28, a total of 648 heatwave alerts of Level 1 and Level 2 were issued.

A Level 1 heatwave status indicates daily maximum temperatures of between 35°C and 37°C, and Level 2 is between 37°C and 40°C, for three consecutive days – with Pokok Sena in Kedah having recorded the highest temperature at 39.3°C.

On March 30, a Level 1 alert was issued for 31 areas, including the entire state of Perlis. The other areas were in Kedah, Perak, Pahang, Selangor, Negri Sembilan, Melaka, Johor, Kelantan, Sabah and Sarawak.

Capacity levels at six reservoirs across Perlis, Kedah, Penang and Johor were also at warning levels.