The last three seasons have been in deficit. But that’s all, Reunion can finally fill the water in this 2021-2022 rainy season, which runs from December to April. The report, published by Météo France Océan Indien this Friday, 20 May, reports +40% rainfall. Therefore, this season ranks fifth among the wettest for 50 years.

The 2021-2022 monsoon season started late, in February, with two cyclone episodes (Batsira and Emnati) bringing heavy rains, particularly over Hauts. These two cyclones made February 2022 the seventh rain in 51 years, with a surplus balance of +60%. In the Southwest Downs, it’s raining three times as much as usual.

Coupled with the month of April which is very heavy with rainfall. We remember this extraordinary rainy episode, “worthy of a cyclone episode”, in early April, highlighting the Météo France Océan Indien. In five days, the balance of rainfall for April will be greatly exaggerated.

On the other hand, December and March are close to normal in terms of rainfall, January is slightly more, according to Météo France Océan Indien.

This rainy season will be very favorable for the Wild South, with 3,416mm of rain (for normal 2,299mm). Hauts are also well watered.

On top of that, the Hauts benefited from this rain windfall (4119 mm average for the normal 2759 mm) allowing the reserves to be partially replenished after 3 dry years.

French Indian Ocean weather

Surpluses were also observed in the East and Southwest (mean +35%). It was the North and West that benefited the least from the rain, even if they still had a +20% surplus.

But this rainy season is also slightly warmer than average. The average temperature exceeded the 1981-2010 normal temperature by 0.47°C: this was the eighth warmest rainy season since 1969. Especially at night the temperatures were warmer than usual, with the minimum temperature showing a deviation of +0.74°C from normal.

This is explained by the significantly higher than usual cloud cover from January to April, due to excess rainfall.

French Indian Ocean weather