Kolkata sweats it out and how
16 May 2012 6:54 AM GMT
It’s hot! Kolkata’s reeling under a near heatwave condition with no sign of respite in the next few days, warned the Regional Meteorological Centre of the IMD.
With temperatures zooming three to four degrees above normal daily (it's officially a heatwave if temperatures zoom 5 degrees above normal) and the discomfort index hovering around 68 degree Celsius, 10 degrees above normal, the sultry and sweaty days have melted into equally uncomfortable nights for Kolkata residents this summer.
The average daytime humidity hovered around 88 per cent on Tuesday and the maximum temperature varied between 37 and 39.6 degrees in the last few days - while the minimum temperature steadied at 29 degrees.
’Wednesday is going to be even hotter. It is the high humidity which is causing the sweat and the suffocation outdoors. There is no forecast for rain. Some flashes of lightening may take place on Tuesday evening’, said an official from the Met Department.
Due to the severe heat condition, the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced an early summer break for state-run and aided schools from Tuesday. Originally schools were supposed to close for summer vacations around 21 May. Said Kalyan Brata Ghosh, father to a 13-year-old schoolchild, ‘My son’s school closes on 18 May. We are providing him with glucose water since he plays outdoors and nothing can stop him from playing, including the hot sun. He’s also drinking a lot of fluids to make up for the loss of salt and dehydration sue to the severe heat’. In 12 districts, the heatwave was on a rampage with temperatures hovering between 41 and 43 degrees Celsius. People were advised to stay indoors between 10 am to 4 pm.
HEAT QUOTIENT
Maximum temperature so far: 39.6 degrees Celsius (April 24)
Tuesday’s max: 36.3(+1), min: 29.2(+3) degrees Celsius
Relative humidity: 88 per cent
Discomfort index: 65 - 68 per cent
With temperatures zooming three to four degrees above normal daily (it's officially a heatwave if temperatures zoom 5 degrees above normal) and the discomfort index hovering around 68 degree Celsius, 10 degrees above normal, the sultry and sweaty days have melted into equally uncomfortable nights for Kolkata residents this summer.
The average daytime humidity hovered around 88 per cent on Tuesday and the maximum temperature varied between 37 and 39.6 degrees in the last few days - while the minimum temperature steadied at 29 degrees.
’Wednesday is going to be even hotter. It is the high humidity which is causing the sweat and the suffocation outdoors. There is no forecast for rain. Some flashes of lightening may take place on Tuesday evening’, said an official from the Met Department.
Due to the severe heat condition, the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced an early summer break for state-run and aided schools from Tuesday. Originally schools were supposed to close for summer vacations around 21 May. Said Kalyan Brata Ghosh, father to a 13-year-old schoolchild, ‘My son’s school closes on 18 May. We are providing him with glucose water since he plays outdoors and nothing can stop him from playing, including the hot sun. He’s also drinking a lot of fluids to make up for the loss of salt and dehydration sue to the severe heat’. In 12 districts, the heatwave was on a rampage with temperatures hovering between 41 and 43 degrees Celsius. People were advised to stay indoors between 10 am to 4 pm.
HEAT QUOTIENT
Maximum temperature so far: 39.6 degrees Celsius (April 24)
Tuesday’s max: 36.3(+1), min: 29.2(+3) degrees Celsius
Relative humidity: 88 per cent
Discomfort index: 65 - 68 per cent
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