Bhubaneswar: Odisha continued to reel under biting cold wave as the minimum temperature dropped below 10°C at 15 places on Monday.
G Udayagiri, a hill station in Kandhamal, at 3.6°C was the coldest place in the state for the second consecutive day, followed by Semilugida in Koraput at 5.4°C, Phulbani and Daringbadi, also in Kandhamal, at 5.5°C and 6°C respectively, and Koraput at 6.4°C, a drop of 5.6°C from normal, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
The mercury plummeted to 6.5°C in Jharsuguda, which was 4.8°C below normal. This is the fourth lowest temperature recorded in the western Odisha town in the month of December (5.6°C in Dec 7 2021 and 5.8°C on Dec 3 2019 and Dec 8 2020).
The other places, which recorded temperature below 10°C, include Rourkela (7°C), Angul (8°C), Nabarangpur (8.6°C), Kirei in Sundargarh (8.7°C), Bhawanipatna (9°C), Balangir (9.4°C), Sundargarh (9.5°C) and Keonjhar and Sonepur at 9.8°C each. While Cuttack recorded 12.5°C, which was 1.2°C below normal, its twin city Bhubaneswar saw above normal temperature of 14°C in the last 24 hours.
Dense fog occurred in Phulbani, Rourkela and Koraput and moderate fog in Bhawanipatna this morning.
The weather agency has forecast a gradual rise in the night temperature by 2-3°C after 24 hours. However, cold wave conditions may continue to prevail in
isolated pockets in the districts of Angul & Jharsuguda till December 31 morning.
Dense to very dense fog may also occur in Sundargarh, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Kendrapada, Jagatsinghpur, Bhadrak & Balasore districts till December 30 morning; Sundargarh, Kandhamal, Kandhamal, Khurda, Balasore, Bhadrak, Mayurbhanj, Cuttack, Puri, Kendrapada and Jagatsinghpur during the subsequent 24 hours. Dense to very dense fog may continue during early morning hours at isolated pockets in districts of Sundargarh, Kandhamal, Kendrapada, Jagatsinghpur and Puri on January 1 and Jagatsinghpur & Sundargarh during the following 24 hours.
The IMD has advised people to take necessary precautions against cold and fog, especially during early morning and night hours, while drivers have been asked to remain cautious due to low visibility in fog-prone areas.
