Rain was not going to drive regulars off Pembroke
THE heavens finally opened yesterday, nearly three weeks since the island last had any recordable rainfall.
The first showers arrived shortly after 11am, followed by a number of heavy downpours.
The previous measurable rainfall was on Wednesday 29 June.
Guernsey would normally have seen nearly 28mm of rain so far this month.
Yesterday’s rainfall, while dramatic, did not see much water, with just 0.6mm of rain.
‘For the rest of the week, there is a possibility of further occasional showers tomorrow [Wednesday] morning and Friday, but rainfall totals are likely to be low – 2mm to 4mm – before a dry and sunny weekend,’ said a Guernsey Met spokesman.
The driest July on record was in 1999, when just 3.9mm fell.
The island has suffered a very dry 2022 so far. Normally there would have been more than 400mm of rain. But in fact there has been just over 260mm.
A group of beach-goers at Pembroke were undeterred by a heavy burst of rain in late morning and continued with their sea swim and picnic yesterday.
‘It’s never stopped us – we’re hardened beach goers,’ Ann Cluett said. ‘It was warmer than first thing this morning and it was absolutely wonderful.’
During the summer, the group tended to go to Pembroke for a swim about five times a week.
‘We’re on the best beach. The tides are just right and you can’t miss that – it was really splendid and we all had fun.’
She said that few remained on the beach after the weather took a turn.
‘The beach was packed this morning then the rain came and they dispersed.’
Gwen Parsons added: ‘The sky just got blacker and blacker.’
For holidaying couple Kay and Lewin Dane, the rain came as a welcome relief after 40C heat back in Leicester.
‘We got here yesterday and it was quite hot,’ Mr Dane said.
‘It was just starting to cloud over when we got all set up.’
They took shelter under a tent they had brought to shade them from the sun.
‘Luckily we have the tent – everyone evacuated when it started raining and we just went in,’ Mrs Dane said.
Guernsey’s temperatures should settle down into the low- to mid-20s for the rest of the week, but the UK has been sweltering in record-breaking temperatures.
Guernsey had its hottest July day ever on Monday, with a temperature of 34.2C – just shy of the island’s hottest day ever. Nine out of the 12 monthly records for Guernsey’s top temperatures have been set since 2000.
