Odisha reels under intense heatwave, Bhubaneswar hottest at 43.2 degree Celsius

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But with hot winds pummelling from a baking central India to Odisha through tracts of western Odisha in last few days, the temperatures went up substantially. “Last night, there was cloud cover which had kept the temperature down, but after it cleared off Wednesday morning, temperatures went up, ” said Sarat Chandra Sahu, Regional Director, Meteorological Centre, Bhubaneswar. Due to the intense heat, roads and marketplaces wore a deserted look.

Apart from Bhubaneswar, temperature went up to 40 degrees and above in 15 places: Balasore (41), Chandbali (41.3), Cuttack (40.6), Angul (40.7), Baripada (40.8), Jharsuguda (41), Sambalpur (40.8), Sundergarh (42), Talcher (41.6), Bhawanipatna (40.5), Balangir (41), Titlagarh (40.5), Malkangiri (42), Sonepur (41.2) and Dhenkanal (40.6). In the evening however, places like Balasore cooled down due to some rain.

The meterology director predicted that the heat wave would continue in Central Odisha and temperature in most parts of coastal regionwould shoot up due to clear sky conditions after April 9. Sahu said temperature in Bhubaneswar during summer was steadily rising in recent years. “On April 9, 2010 the temperature was recorded at 43.6° Celsius, while in 2011 there was a slight dip,” he said.