Feel the heat in Singapore? No let-up this week

Mercury hits a high for second time this month; light winds likely next week
Tania Tan, Straits Times 21 May 08;

TEMPERATURES here hit a scorching 34 deg C yesterday, and the heat is not likely to let up until well into next week when light winds may provide some relief.

The mercury peaked at about 3pm yesterday, the second time this month that temperatures have hit that high. It hit 34.1 deg C in the first week of the month.

While the National Environment Agency (NEA) could not give details, checks on international weather websites, including the United Nations' World Meteorological Organisation, confirmed that May has been the hottest month of the year so far.

The United States-based Weather Underground - an offshoot of the University of Michigan's Internet weather database - said the average temperature this month has been 31 deg C.

May is traditionally the second hottest month of the year, with average temperatures falling between 24.7 deg C and 31.6 deg C.

More hot days with intermittent showers are expected until the final week of this month, NEA stated in its fortnightly forecast.

Whether this month will set a new record for the highest extreme monthly temperature

remains to be seen. That record was set in May 2005 when temperatures hit 35.4 deg C.

But even without setting records, the current heat has sent thermostat settings down, and while takings for many alfresco businesses have not dipped, complaints have been streaming in.

Owners of some restaurants and bars along the Singapore River, for example, have had to provide more fans to keep their customers cool.

Robertson Quay restaurant Brussels Sprouts, where 60 per cent of the dining space is outdoors, has seen complaints increase tenfold since March, with customers asking to be seated indoors instead.

In response, it added six more fans to its eight standing fans and 14 ceiling fans last month, said Ms Monique Kwok, operating partner of the Belgian restaurant.

People are also looking for more ways to keep cool. At a grocery stall in Toa Payoh, ice cream and cold drinks sales are up 20 per cent, said minimart owner Ong Liang Eng.

And some even headed for their hairdressers' for heat relief.

Secondary school teacher Chen Ai-lian, 31, who has had long hair for two years, traded her locks for a short crop last week.

'It felt like I was walking around in an oven, with hair sticking to my back. It's amazing what a difference a haircut makes,' she said.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY TESSA WONG