Lucknow ‘unbearable’ at 45.8° as intense heatwave sweeps UP
At 33.5 degrees, Prayagraj experiences the warmest night in 126 years; rain and thundershowers likely at isolated places over the state, says IMD
LUCKNOW Uttar Pradesh continued to reel under intense heatwave, with the mercury across cities well above the 40 degrees Celsius mark, and several parts experiencing warm nights during the last 24 hours. Lucknow recorded another hottest day of the season with the maximum temperature soaring to 45.8 degrees (5.6 degrees above normal) compared to 45.1 degrees a day before.
The minimum temperature, however, dropped to 29.3 degrees, which was 3.1 degrees above normal as against Thursday when it was 32.4 degrees - warmest in 42 years.
Lucknow is expected to have mainly clear sky on Saturday, becoming partly cloudy with possibility of thunder/ light rain/drizzle. The maximum and minimum temperatures will be around 44° and 29°, respectively, according to the IMD bulletin.
Kanpur (IAF) was the hottest in the state at 48.2°, followed by Jhansi 47.6° and Kanpur City 46.2°. Prayagraj recorded a maximum of 46.8° and the warmest night since 1898 as the mercury breached a 126-year record with a minimum temperature of 33.5° (5.6 degrees above normal), according to IMD data.
The mercury also shattered a five-year record for May in Sultanpur that sizzled at 46.2°C. The previous highest was 45.8° on May 29, 2019. The highest maximum temperature of 47 degrees was recorded on June 19, 2005.
Fursatganj scorched at 46.4° - the highest temperature in 12 years in May. The all-time highest was 46.6° on June 6, 2014, said Mohd Danish, Lucknow Met in-charge.
Orai recorded a maximum of 46.8, Hamirpur 46.2, Bulandshahr 46, Hardoi 45.6, Bareilly 45.3, Agra, Aligarh, Churk and Ayodhya 45.
Rain/thundershowers were likely at isolated places over the state. The IMD issued a warning of a dust storm/thunderstorm accompanied with lightning/gusty winds (speed 40-50 kmph) at isolated places while heatwave and warm night conditions were also likely at isolated places in east UP.
Prabha Gupta of Lucknow’s Vijay Khand (Gomti Nagar) said: “We are experiencing water crises. The supply comes only for an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening while power cuts are frequent.”
Parimal Singh, a resident of Vishwas Khand, said while water pressure was low, frequent power cuts made life miserable.
“Due to erratic power supply, our daily life has become a challenge,” rued Akshara Dayal of Indira Nagar.
IMPACT OF RELATIVE HUMIDITY
High values of relative humidity aggravate the impact of heatwave. High relative humidity leads to a slower evaporation rate of sweat, thereby reducing the efficiency of the cooling mechanism of the human body.
