This July, marked by deadly floods that have affected many parts of Belgium, has become the wettest in 40 years, according to the Royal Meteorological Institute (RMI).
At least 151 millimeters of rain has already fallen in Ukla, where RMI is headquartered, making it the wettest July since 1980, according to David Dehaenauw, head of forecasting.
“This is the sixth wettest July since 1833, while the highest July precipitation in Ucla was recorded in 1942: 196 mm (or l/m2),” Dehenauw said on Twitter.
The wettest month ever recorded at HQ was August 1996, when 231 millimeters of rain fell, while the highest rainfall in any 30-day period in Uccle was recorded between June 21 and July 20, 1980, when RMI recorded 241 millimeters.
In the same month, 343 millimeters of rain fell in High Fens, in the south.
This news will come as no surprise to most people who have been in Belgium for the past two weeks, mostly because of the floods that hit the country on July 14 and 15, killing 41 people and damaging thousands of homes.
Although the period of heavy rains seems to have passed, there will be no real improvement in the coming days, according to the latest RMI weather forecast.
