June half intensely hot, half wetter than normal

Islamabad : The Pakistan Meteorological Department has warned that most parts of the country will see intense heat in the first half of June.

It however said the second half of the month would have wetter weather than average.

In a weather advisory, the PMD spokesman said the El Nino, one of the global climate indicators, was shifting from negative to neutral phase, while North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) was persistent in the positive phase.

"The Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) is likely to remain neutral in June."

The weatherman said intense heat was likely to prevail in most parts of the country, during the first half of June.

"The temperature will remain 1-2°C above long term average in the plain areas of the country."

The official said mostly dry weather condition with chances of one to two isolated rainfall and thunderstorm events with dust storms were expected in the first half of June.

As for the second half of the month, he said weather was likely to remain wetter than long term average.

"Two to three rainy spells are likely to occur in upper parts of the country, including northeast Punjab, upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Gilgit Baltistan," he said. The weatherman said temperatures were likely to drop by 2-4 °C in the second half of June compared to the first half.