Bhubaneswar: Odisha continued to reel under severe heat wave conditions with as many as 12 places in the state recording maximum temperatures above 40 degrees celsius on Tuesday.
As per the regional Met department, Jharsuguda was the hottest place in Odisha with a maximum temperature of 44.4 degrees Celsius, followed by Hirakud with 44.1 deg C, Sambalpur 43.6 deg C, Bolangir 43.5 deg C, Talcher 43.1 deg C, Angul 42.7 deg C, Sundergarh 42.5 deg C and Bhawanipatna 42 deg C.
Bhubaneswar and neighbouring Cuttack city recorded maximum temperatures of 37.3 degree Celsius and 37.5 degree Celsius respectively on Tuesday.
A report of the Special Relief Commissioner claimed that 16 people allegedly have died so far this year in Odisha due to sunstroke. Of these, sunstroke has been ruled out in two cases, while probe is underway in the rest 14 cases, the control room of SRC added.
"We have no other option. To survive in this heat, we are covering our faces and carrying a water bottle whereever we go,” a local of Titlagarh said.
“The temperature had reduced for some days due to the Nor'wester. It has risen now. People are mostly dependent upon watermelon and cold water and cold drinks. Shops also remain closed due to the excess heat," said a Boudh resident.
Meanwhile, the Met department has forecast heavy rain along with hailstorms in the coastal areas along with Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj till May 11.
Sarat Chandra Sahu, director of IMD's Bhubaneswar centre, said, "As per the forecast, many parts of northern Odisha are likely to experience Nor'wester rains while in some areas of Southern Odisha, there may be light showers. The temperature is also likely to drop slightly from tomorrow. From May 14, we are expecting temperatures to stay below 40 degrees Celcius in the state.”
Last night, a dangerous dust storm with wind speed of above 100 kmph had hit Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan followed by a squall following which schools in Delhi and Haryana have remained shut.
Prior to that, a deadly dust and thunderstorm that had swept several parts of the northern plains last week, claimed around 124 lives and left over 300 others injured in five states.
Signalling that the uncertain weather phenomenon over northern India has moved eastward, the India Meteorological Department has warned that thunderstorm and squall with wind speed of up to 70 kmph are very likely in Uttarakhand and parts of eastern India including Bihar, Odisha and West Bengal on Wednesday.
In an advisory, the IMD said a similar weather pattern is likely to be witnessed in Odisha, West Bengal, and in six of the seven north-eastern states except Mizoram. The IMD said south-interior Karnataka, north-coastal Andhra Pradesh, Rayalaseema region of the state, Tamil Nadu and Kerala will also witness thunderstorm with gusty winds tomorrow.
The National Disaster Management Authority also informed that thunderstorm and squall are likely to hit 20 states including Odisha on Wednesday.
“The thunderstorm activity will continue in the seven North-Eastern states, and Bihar, Odisha and West Bengal in the East, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and South-Coastal Karnataka and South Coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh,” said KJ Ramesh, DG, IMD.