DRY SPELLS BETWEEN JUNE AND SEPT THIS YEAR: METEOROLOGICAL DEPT

25th March, 2009

KOTA KINABALU: Dry spells ahead are the forecast for the West Coast and Interior areas in Sabah between June and September this year.

The Meteorological Department here said very little rain is expected during those months of the southwest monsoon season.

Department director in Sabah, Abd Malik Tussin said rainfall in the two areas could well be much lower than the average.

“At the moment, we are still within the northeast monsoon season which began in November but it will soon end,” he said.

According to him, the wet weather lately was due to the La Nina phenomenon, albeit at a lower level, and it was expected to end by the middle of the year.

The La Nina phenomenon causes wet weather while the El Nino has a reverse effect.

Abd Malik said the forecast for seasonal change was usually 70 per cent correct and that the Malaysian weather forecast was actually based on the American model.