BHUBANESWAR: With the heatwave showing no signs of a let up in Odisha, the suspected sunstroke fatalities stood at 36 in the last 48 hours as more number of deaths came in from western districts which bore the brunt of the blistering conditions.
Rourkela city in Sundargarh district, where 10 persons had died within seven hours on Thursday, reported six more casualties, prompting the state government to deploy a high-level medical team to ascertain the exact cause of the string of fatalities. Similarly, the industrial town of Jharsuguda reported eight deaths, most of the victims being drivers by profession. Six deaths each were reported from Sambalpur and Balangir districts.
The state government, however, said it has received reports of 13 suspected sunstroke deaths in Sundargarh and six in Jharsuguda in the last 48 hours. Of the 42 suspected deaths reports this year, six have been confirmed to have been caused by heatstroke, officials said.
Special relief commissioner (SRC) Satyabrata Sahu said collectors of Sundargarh and Jharsuguda are closely monitoring the situation. “A team of doctors is investigating the reason behind the deaths reported in the two districts. The exact reason can be ascertained after receiving the post-mortem reports,” he said.
Preliminary reports indicated that most of the victims succumbed while working outside amid soaring temperature between 11 am and 3 pm.
SRC Sahu said district collectors have been directed to create awareness so that people avoid working during the peak hours as heatwave to severe heatwave condition is expected to prevail in Odisha for the next two days.
The India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) extended range outlook for the next two weeks does not bring any cheer. The national weather forecaster predicted heatwave condition in Odisha between May 31 and June 6. Similarly, during the subsequent week, day temperature is likely to jump by 2 degree to 3 degree C above normal.
Alarmed by the spike in deaths and heatwave forecasts, the Health and Family Welfare has issued an advisory and directed all the districts to stay in readiness to deal with heat-related diseases.
Health secretary Shalini Pandit instructed all medical colleges and hospitals, sub-divisional hospitals, community health centres and district headquarter hospitals to make adequate arrangements as per the national and state action plans on heat-related illnesses. Proper management and surveillance must be ensured, she said.
Meanwhile, heatwave condition prevailed in most parts of Balangir, Sonepur, Bargarh, Sambalpur, Jharsuguda, Kalahandi and Kandhamal districts. Titlagarh which recorded 46.5 degree Celsius was the hottest place in the state. However, denizens of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack had some respite with mercury reporting a drop due to cloudy weather on the day.