Apr 4 was the Hottest Day of the Year; Expect Warm Weather to Continue Until May 2023

You’ve probably complained about how hot it’s gotten in recent weeks and noticed that there are rain showers after the hottest time of the day.

Well, it’s no surprise that we are in the warmest period of the year, with such weather expected to continue until May.

So stock up on your sunscreen and bring an umbrella everywhere you go as the weather oscillates between being super hot and super rainy.

Hottest Day Recorded in April

The National Environmental Agency (NEA) told the Straits Times that the hottest day of the year was recorded on 4 April.

On that day, the temperatures hit as high as 35.9 deg C in Paya Lebar at 2:54 pm.

However, it is not a shock that the temperature went up this high as the NEA said that we are currently undergoing the inter-monsoon period, which begins in April and ends in May.

So bear about a month before we are free from the sweltering heat.

During this period, we will experience hotter temperatures and thundery rain in the late afternoons.

Previously, the Meteorological Service Singapore mentioned that for the first two weeks of April, the daily temperature would range from 24 deg C to 34 deg C, with a possibility of the daily maximum temperature reaching around 35 deg C.

Moderate to heavy thundery showers with frequent lightning was also expected, as the monsoon rain band was forecast to lie close to the Southeast Asia region.

Here is the weather forecast for the next two weeks, which is still hot and rainy as ever but becomes more promising towards the end of this month:

How Does This Compare to Last Year?

According to the NEA, 2022 was the sixth wettest year since 1980, with a recorded rainfall of 2207.8mm, which exceeded the long-term average annual rainfall of 2113.3mm.

There were also 210 days of rainfall in Singapore, the most in nearly fifty years.

March 2022 was the wettest March since 2009, and October 2022 was the wettest in 40 years.

Temperatures this year have yet to exceed the highest temperature recorded last year, 36.7 deg C in Admiralty on 13 May, the hottest temperature ever recorded in May.

Hotter Weather in Neighbouring Countries

You may have heard recently that a heat index of 50.2 deg C was recorded in Bangkok.

The Thai Meteorological Department recorded temperatures in other regions of Thailand that exceeded 40 deg C.

So maybe, 35-degree weather isn’t so bad after all, considering there will likely be showers accompanying it afterwards.

Parts of Northern Malaysia are also experiencing hotter temperatures due to the inter-monsoon period and air pollution.

Unhealthy air pollution with an API reading of 104 was recorded in Penang on Thursday (13 April).

Parts of Kedah have experienced weather as warm as between 35 deg C and 37 deg C.