Dubrovnik is again a world record holder, but this time it has nothing to do with the tourism industry. Due to the unbelievable amount of rain that fell on the city early this morning Dubrovnik was officially the wettest city in the city over the past 24 hours with almost double the amount of rain of any other of the 6,000 world destination measured.

An incredible 260 litres of rain per metre squared fell on the city in a five-hour period from 2.00 am to 7.00 am!

This is the most rain since 1961 and more rain than has fallen on Dubrovnik than in the whole of the past six months. Dubrovnik had twice as much rain in a few hours than cities in India and Sri Lanka that are at the end of their monsoon season.

“I can’t remember rain like this ever before, it was like the sky opened a bath full of water was dropped, no not a bath a swimming pool,” commented Alan Walters for The Dubrovnik Times.

Roads flooded, trees fell down and the fire brigade were called to almost 100 different interventions to pump flood water out of shops, homes and businesses. However, this was hardly surprising given the sheer weight of water.

River Ombla turns brown - Photo Tonci Vlasic

Speaking to The Dubrovnik Times Daniel Pavlinović from Storm Chasers Dubrovnik commented that “The amount of rain in such a short period of time was just unseen. Traditionally the wettest month in Dubrovnik in November and on average 147 litres per metres squared fall throughout the whole month. In just a couple of hours we had more rain than the whole of the wettest month in the city, just incredible.”

Flooded building site in Dubrovnik - Photo Boris Radić/Hanza Media

To add some perspective according to figures from the Metrological Office in the UK the capital London receives around 557 litres per metres squared annually. Do the maths. More rain fell in five hours on Dubrovnik than six months in London.

The second wettest city in the world was Ratmalana in Sri Lanka which received 134 litres per metre squared and in third place was Surigao in the Philippines that saw 133 litres. In fact, the Dubrovnik region dominated the top ten with Konavle coming in eighth position with a whopping 99 litres.

Dubrovnik a world beater - Photo Ogimet.com