Last month was one of the top 10 hottest Aprils on record for Bahrain and the second driest.

The temperature was 1.8 degrees Celsius above the long-term average for April of 26.8C, according to the Transportation and Telecommunications Ministry's meteorological directorate.

It was the sixth highest mean monthly temperature for April since 1902, with the hottest being 27.4C - recorded last year and in the year 2000, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

The highest temperature recorded last month was 40.9C, which is the fourth highest temperature for April since 1946, with the highest ever recorded being 41.7C in April 1949.

However, the mean relative humidity for April was recorded at 45 per cent, which is the second lowest mean monthly relative humidity for April since 1955 and was only exceeded in April 2012 when it was 44 per cent.

The report also stated that 'unsettled weather conditions' would continue into mid-May due to fast movements of cold upper troughs from the Mediterranean towards the Arabian Peninsula and Gulf, which produce thunderstorms and gusty winds. - TradeArabia News Service