Odisha sweltered in the blazing sun on Wednesday as a searing heatwave engulfed parts of the state for the third successive day and the maximum temperature breached the 40 degrees Celsius-mark in 24 places, the Met office said.
The mercury shot up to 43 degrees Celsius or more in 11 weather stations, including Subarnapur town where it was 44.5 degrees Celsius, the highest of the season, the Bhubaneswar Meteorological Centre said.
Streets wore a deserted look as the blistering heat scorched Subarnapur, Sambalpur, Angul, Boudh, Bolangir, Jharsuguda, Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, Sundargarh, Deogarh and Bargarh districts, a bulletin stated.
The condition occurs when the maximum temperature is 4.5-6.4 notches above normal and at least 40 degrees Celsius in the plains or 37 in the coastal areas at two weather stations or more in a Met subdivision for two consecutive days.
The temperature soared by five levels above average to settle at 40.1 degrees Celsius in Balasore. It rose by three notches each to touch 40.3 degrees Celsius in the capital and 40.2 at Chandbali in Bhadrak.
Angul boiled at 44.1 degrees Celsius, while it was 44 each in Jharsuguda and Bolangir. Cuttack logged a temperature of 39.5, two levels above average, the weather office said.
The hot weather is set to continue as there will be no large change in the maximum temperature during the next four-five days. The temperature will be above normal by three-five notches in the interior parts of Odisha and by two-three levels in a few areas in the coastal region, according to the department.
The centre issued a 'yellow warning' of heatwave in western Odisha for the next three days and in 11 districts on Thursday. The alert denotes that the heat is tolerable, but there is a slight health concern for vulnerable sections like the elderly and infants.
It urged people to take precautionary measures while going outside from 11 am to 3 pm in these areas.
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