Bhubaneswar, April 28: A sudden spike in the mercury level brought back severe discomfort among people today as the city recorded its second highest temperature of the season at 45.3°C.
The only time it has been hotter here this season was on April 11 when the mercury touched 45.8°C.
Regional meteorological centre director Sarat Chandra Sahu told The Telegraph that the sudden rise in temperature was due to a quick change in the wind flow pattern after 10.30am and the absence of moisture-bound air.
"Before 10.30am, the wind was flowing from the southwesterly direction that brought down the temperature. But it changed its pattern and started flowing from the northwesterly side afterwards. This affected the weather in the city and resulted in a sudden rise in the mercury level at many coastal districts," said Sahu.
According to the weather bulletin released by the Met centre here today, as many as 18 places recorded maximum temperatures above 40°C while Sonepur, Talcher and Bhubaneswar experienced temperatures in excess of 45°C. Sonepur and Talcher recorded the highest temperature of the state today at 45.4°C.
"Life is getting difficult with such high temperatures in the city. It is becoming an impossible task for us to get out of the office or the house after 11am. This is just April and there is another month-and-a-half of summer left to burn us," said Bilal Sen, a private sector employee.
The number of deaths allegedly due to sunstroke in the state continued to climb with the special relief commissioner's office today receiving reports of seven fresh cases. This takes the total number of sunstroke deaths to 119.
Some nine cases have already being confirmed to be sunstrokes till today, sources said. A four-month-old baby died at Nandankanan today, apparently due to sunstroke. However, the authorities have not ascertained the cause of the death yet.
Met director Sahu said the maximum temperature was likely to come down by two or three degrees in the next 24 hours and would go down further to around the 40°C mark after May 5 in the coastal as well as the interior parts of the state. "There are high indications of light rain and thundershowers in some parts of the state after the next 24 hours. The rain will help decrease the temperature. However, the people will feel the humidity. They should also be alert and ensure safety about this upcoming change in weather because lightning is likely to occur in some parts of the state," said the Met director.
