SINGAPORE – A heavy downpour on the afternoon of April 21 led to a flash flood in Yishun Avenue 7.
National water agency PUB reported the flood at 3.30pm on X, and said that its officers were deployed to help those affected and direct traffic away from flood waters.
The flash flood, which occurred near the intersection of Yishun Street 22, subsided after about 25 minutes. It was the third flash flood that had taken place in Yishun in nine days.
In a Facebook post on the evening of April 21, PUB said: “This location has experienced flooding over the past two weeks due to heavy rain temporarily overwhelming the drainage capacity of the roadside drains.
“PUB has designated this location as a flood hot spot and will be implementing measures to enhance the drainage in this area.”
It added in its post that the heaviest rainfall on April 21 of 102.8mm was recorded in northern Singapore, from 2.55pm to 5.05pm. This amount corresponds to 42 per cent of Singapore’s average monthly rainfall in April, and lies within the top 3 per cent of maximum daily rainfall records since 1978.
April 21 is also the second consecutive day that flash floods have been reported in Singapore.
On April 20, heavy showers in the afternoon led to flash floods in several parts of Bukit Timah. They followed flash flood risk warnings issued by PUB for 18 locations, including Paya Lebar, Orchard Road, Thomson Road, Toa Payoh, Hillcrest Road, Sunset Drive, Boon Lay and Alexandra Road.
Yishun Avenue 7 was affected by flash floods on April 13, along with two other locations in the north-east: the KPE slip road to Buangkok East Drive, and the Punggol Way slip road to the TPE.
On April 15, heavy rain led to a flash flood in Yishun Avenue 7 again, near the intersection with Yishun Street 22.
The Meteorological Service Singapore (MSS) on April 16 said short thundery showers are expected over parts of the island in the afternoon on most days in the second half of the month, with some extending into the evening.
Heavy downpours have persisted since the start of April, with the heaviest recorded on April 13, when 117mm of rainfall was measured around the Yishun Ring Road area. According to MSS, this is the highest daily rainfall recorded for the first half of the month.
Despite frequent rain in the first two weeks of April, nine days saw temperatures reaching 34 deg C or higher. The highest daily maximum temperature so far this month is 36.2 deg C, recorded in Paya Lebar on April 12.
Singapore’s all-time highest temperature remains at 37 deg C, recorded in Ang Mo Kio on May 13, 2023, and in Tengah on April 17, 1983.
MSS noted that most parts of Singapore received above-average rainfall in the first half of April. Rainfall in Yio Chu Kang Road was around 217 per cent above average, while Kranji Reservoir saw rainfall 9 per cent below average.
Expect warm days with short thundery showers in the afternoons until end-AprilWhy do my aches and pains get worse when it rains?
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