A spell of "enhanced thunderstorm activities" is expected in south Bengal from May 23 to 27, a Met bulletin on Monday said.
Kolkatans, by now familiar with such alerts, would know that they don't necessarily mean a consistently cloudy sky and frequent spells of rain.
Two such previous spells have had scorching days on both sides of a temporary relief in the form of a thunderstorm.
A Met official said the city could hope for "a couple of thunderstorms" during the period (May 23 to 27). But when it won't rain, the weather is likely to be hot and humid.
The official said an enhanced thunderstorm alert is issued when thunderstorm is likely over several days.
"Due to likely formation of cyclonic circulation over Jharkhand and adjoining area around 23rd May and strong moisture incursion from Bay of Bengal, enhanced thunderstorm with lightning activity along with gusty wind and hail is very likely over the districts of West Bengal from 23rd May to 27th May," said the Met bulletin.
Exactly seven days ago, the Met office had issued an enhanced thunderstorm alert in the wake of the landfall of Cyclone Mocha. The forecast, of a rise in thunderstorm activities between May 17 and 20, was based on the assumption that Mocha would dissipate gradually, following which moisture from the Bay of Bengal would enter south Bengal.
But the cyclone died sooner than expected and a storm, the strongest nor'wester of 2023 till now, struck hours after the bulletin was issued on May 15. The storm clocked a wind speed of 84kmph, felling trees and stalling trains and disrupting flights.
A second and much weaker nor'wester came three days later.
Between the two storms, the sun was unsparing. Ditto since the last storm.
Earlier, an enhanced thunderstorm alert was sounded for the period from April 29 to May 3.
On Monday, the mercury breached the 40-degree mark for the second straight day in more than one district. At 42.3 degrees Celsius, Purulia was the hottest place in the state.
The Met office recorded a maximum temperature of 36 degrees in Alipore on Monday. Dum Dum and Salt Lake were a notch warmer. But the high moisture level multiplied the discomfort.