SINGAPORE - The mercury fell to 21.6 deg C here on the morning of Jan 11, almost matching 2024’s lowest temperature of 21.4 deg C.

The cool temperature was recorded at 8.51am in Newton while the highest rainfall was recorded at 86.8mm at 9am in Pasir Panjang.

Powerful winds and heavy rain swept Singapore overnight on Jan 10, toppling trees, disrupting traffic and also bring sweater weather to the island.

Rush-hour traffic slowed to a crawl in some parts of Singapore after hours of relentless rain since morning, with temperature dropping to 22 deg C in some places.

Facebook user Nazli Haffiz wrote that he missed his flight due to the heavy traffic jam to Changi Airport on Jan 10.

He booked the next flight for Kuala Lumpur on Jan 11 and spent the next 12 hours at the airport.

Photos and videos seen by The Straits Times show fallen trees in various locations, including Old Upper Thomson Road, Sentosa and Serangoon.

In one video, a large fallen tree at One Degree 15 Marina pinned a white car and obstructed a one-lane road.

Another photo posted by Mr Seah Kian Peng, MP in Marine Parade GRC, on Jan 10 showed a fallen tree at Kampong Park.

He said the town council, grassroot leaders, police and the Singapore Civil Defence Force were at the scene, and that no one was hurt.

National water agency PUB warned on Jan 9 that extreme downpours might overwhelm Singapore’s canals and drains temporarily between Jan 10 and 13, when a monsoon surge was expected to hit the city. This may trigger sudden and localised floods.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) said on Jan 9 that the monsoon surge – a sudden increase in wind speeds that causes cold air to rush southwards in the South China Sea – could cause temperatures to dip to 22 deg C in some places.

The wet weather on Jan 10 led to PUB issuing flash flood alerts in area...