Bhubaneswar, June 14: First the humid conditions, then the frequent power cuts. Unable to take it any more, residents lost their cool and ransacked the Khandagiri section office of Central Electricity Supply Utility (Cesu) last night to vent their anger.

The mob torched a motorcycle and an autorickshaw during a power cut in the locality that lasted around four hours last night.

Police said the night watchman deployed at the office tried to stop the mob, but the residents overpowered him and ransacked the office.

"We had to snap the power connection after it started raining at 1am. After a few hours, the mob entered the office and set two vehicles ablaze. We have lodged a complaint with the Khandagiri police station," said officer in charge of Bhubaneswar city distribution division II, A.K. Bisoi.

Following the incident, employees of Cesu staged a demonstration demanding adequate infrastructure.

"We don't have adequate transformers, oil and fuse, which can be used to restore power connection. What's more, consumers always issue us threats during power cuts," said an employee.

Cesu officials admitted that Khandagiri and peripheral areas were witnessing frequent power cuts, as they did not have a sub-station. "We are dependant on the Pokhariput and Bharatpur sub-stations to meet the demand of around 40,000 consumers. Consumption increases during humid conditions. Therefore, it has become difficult to provide electricity round the clock. However, the new sub-station at Khandagiri will be functional in another 10 days bringing an end to the problem," said a Cesu official.

Not only Khandagiri, several other areas, including Rasulgarh, Bapuji Nagar, Nayapalli, Saheed Nagar, Ghatikia, Palasuni and Chandrasekharpur, are witnessing frequent power cuts this month.

"Heat and humid conditions have already made life difficult for us. The load shedding has simply added to our woes," said Pratik Mishra, a resident of Rasulgarh.

The Cesu officials said the power cuts were taking place because of ongoing maintenance work.

"Transformers and electric wires have been damaged at several places due to thunderstorms. Besides, we have to disrupt power supply during rain to avoid further damage to wires and other infrastructure," said a Cesu official.

Though pre-monsoon showers at several places in coastal and interior Odisha have brought down the temperature a bit, seven places in the western Odisha today recorded a temperature of 40 degrees Celsius and more.

Hirakud today sizzled at 41.9 degrees Celsius, while Jharsuguda was the second hottest at 41.6 degrees Celsius. Sambalpur and Bhawanipatna both recorded a maximum temperature of 41.4 degrees Celsius today.