Bhubaneswar: Odisha continued to reel under intense heatwave conditions on Thursday, with 24 places recording maximum temperatures above 40°C, according to the India Meteorological Department.
The western districts bore the brunt of the scorching weather as mercury soared to 44°C each in Jharsuguda and Talcher. Titilagarh was close third at 43.8°C, followed by Angul and Dhenkanal at 43.5°C each, Hirakud at 43.4°C, Sambalpur and Paralakhemundi at 43°C each, Bargarh 42.6°C, Sundargarh, Nuapada and Rourkela at 42.5°C each, Balangir and Sonepur 42.3°C each.
Most places in the western region showed departures from normal ranging between +2°C and +3.1°C, indicating significantly hotter-than-usual conditions. Even coastal and urban areas felt the pinch, with Bhubaneswar recording its highest temperature of the season at 42.1°C and neighbouring Cuttack reaching 41.8°C with a departure of 3.9°C and 3.8°C from normal, respectively.
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Other places where temperatures soared above 40°C are Bhawanipatna (42°C), Boudh (41.4°C), Nayagarh, Khurda and Jagatsinghpur at 41°C each, Keonjhar (40.9°C), and Phulbani and Jajpur at 40.6°C each.
The MeT office had warned of heatwave conditions at isolated places in the districts of Balangir, Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, Keonjhar and Khurda on April 23. Similar weather conditions may prevail in Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, Balangir, Keonjhar, Angul and Khurda on April 24.
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Hot and humid conditions may also continue in Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapada, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Khurda, Nayagarh, Ganjam and Gajapati districts till April 25, while Balangir, Sambalpur, Kandhamal may experience warm nights on April 25-26. The day temperature across the state is likely to fall by 2-3°C after 3 days, it added.
