Officials said Thursday’s hot day gave way to a breezy evening as heavy rain and winds of up to 60 km/h swept through the city, bringing temperatures down by 6-10 degrees Celsius by 7pm.
The Meteorological Department issued an orange alert for Friday, predicting multiple periods of light rain and gusty winds of up to 80 km/h. Light rain is also likely over the weekend, ending the month on a relatively cooler note, officials said.
While the maximum temperature in Delhi was 41.1 degrees Celsius on Thursday, the ‘feel-like’ temperature or heat index was the season’s highest at 48.2 degrees Celsius, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The minimum temperature was 28.4 degrees Celsius, two degrees higher than normal. Humidity levels were also high, making the outdoors uncomfortable during the day.
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But the situation changed after rain hit the city around 6:45 p.m.
Meanwhile, rain also caused delays to more than 500 flights, with a Delhi-bound flight diverted to Jaipur due to the storm, according to FlightRadar24.
An official said the highest wind speed recorded in Delhi was 61 km per hour in Palam. “Till 8:30 pm, Safdarjung recorded 3.3 mm rainfall, while Palam recorded 3.1 mm rainfall. Mehrauli witnessed 6.5 mm rainfall till 7 pm.”
Rainfall and wind activity due to the western disturbance is expected to peak on Friday, with gusty winds and widespread rain possible in northwest India, said Mahesh Palawat, vice president, Skymet Weather.
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“We can expect rain over the hills as well on May 29, with rain activity likely across the plains till May 30 to May 31,” he said.
The IMD expects no heatwave conditions in Delhi until at least June 3. While the maximum may drop to around 34°C by Saturday, it is likely to gradually rise to 39-41°C by June 3. The minimum is likely to hover between 23-25 degrees Celsius on Friday. Usually, monsoon rains hit Delhi by June 27.
Delhi witnessed extreme heat in the second half of the month, recording an isolated city-wide heat wave for at least five days. The highest maximum temperature in Delhi so far during the season was recorded on May 19, when it rose to 45.1 degrees Celsius.
As expected, humidity levels remained high during the day due to wind direction shifting from west to southeast and east, IMD scientist Krishna Mishra said. “This was due to the approaching Western unrest,” Mishra said.
In May 2025, the highest maximum temperature was 42.3°C, with no heatwave days throughout the month. In May 2024, Delhi witnessed six consecutive days of heatwave with a maximum temperature of 46.8°C. IMD data showed that in May 2023, Delhi did not witness any heatwave days with a maximum of 43.7 degrees Celsius, while in May 2022, two heatwave days with a maximum of 45.6 degrees Celsius were recorded.
Meanwhile, Delhi’s air was in the ‘poor’ zone with the AQI index standing at 207. It was 190 (moderate) the previous day. The Al-Qaeda in Iraq index is expected to improve on Friday.
