Yesterday, parts of East and South Jakarta saw some brief hail amid heavy rainstorms, another instance of the unusual weather phenomenon that the island of Java has been experiencing recently.
According to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), yesterday’s hail in Jakarta was so brief that it lasted just a few minutes.
That said, the agency believes that there may be more hail in the capital to come as we’re transitioning from monsoon season to summer.
“These incidents usually occur during the changing of the seasons, around March, April, or May,” said BMKG head Andi Eka Sakya, as quoted by Tempo.
Furthermore, Cyclone Debbie, which is tearing through northeast Australia, is also contributing to weather instability in parts of Indonesia.
Yesterday’s hail did not cause any substantial damage in Jakarta as the ice droplets were no bigger than small pebbles, but Andi warned that it’s important to recognize signs of hail so that we can shelter ourselves indoors to avoid getting hurt.
According to the BMKG, hail is usually preceded by extremely hot and humid weather the previous day. On the day of, expect to see large build up of cumulonimbus clouds leading to chilly winds on the ground.
Earlier this month, one person was killed and several others were injured in Surabaya, East Java during a rainstorm that produced hail. Before yesterday’s incident, the last time Jakarta experienced hail was in 2014.
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