The new 2019-2020 flood season has begun and OPIDIN now offers weekly bulletins until the water level in Mopti has reached its peak level.
Based on the information available on 6 August, OPIDIN predicts that the flood of 2019 will be probably low compared to the peak flood levels during the last 25 years. The prediction of the flood level is still uncertain, however, depending on the rainfall in the Upper Niger during the coming weeks.
The water level in Mopti remained at a low level until 23 July, but increased between 23 July and 6 August with, in total, 128 cm. Despite the fast rise of the water level during the last fortnight (9 cm per day), the current water level in Mopti is still 1 m lower than early August last year. The water level in Mopti is still low at the moment due to the below-average rainfall in the Upper Niger Basin in the last 3 months. There is, however, an increased chance that the rainfall in Guinea and Mali will be above-average in the coming week. If so, the maximal water level will become higher than predicted now.
