Maldives Meteorological Service (MET Office) has issued a white alert for the whole country, warning of ‘swell wave surges’.

The alert is valid until 8pm on Sunday, with the office cautioning that ‘high swell waves will be experienced during high tide’.

It added that northern atolls are expected to experience swell waves at around 5pm, while swell waves are expected in central atolls at around 5:30pm and 6:45pm for southern atolls.

In a notice issued earlier on Sunday, MET Office said that country has been facing adverse weather conditions due to a depression that had formed around 1000 kilometers southeast of Addu City. It said that the depression is expected to move further from the country.

The heavy rainfall has led to flooding in a number of the islands across the country, especially in the southern and central atolls.

Furthermore, MET Office said that over 110 milliliters of rainfall had been recorded in Gan district of Addu City within 24 hours, while 56 milliliters of rain were experienced in Kaadehdhoo island of Gaafu Dhaalu atoll.

MET Office said that it will be partly cloudy at all times ‘with scattered showers and thunderstorms experienced in central and southern atolls’, and that the seas are expected to be moderate in southern atolls and ‘slight to moderate’ over the rest of the country.