Mercury hits 38°C as Bangladesh swelters in heat wave

The temperature in Bangladesh has shot up to 38 degrees Celsius with no sign of respite from the sweltering condition in sight.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 25 April 2019, 04:54 PM
Updated : 25 April 2019, 04:54 PM

Mercury rose to 37.1 degrees Celsius in Dhaka while the maximum temperature of 38 degrees Celsius was recorded in Rajshahi on Thursday.

Maximum temperature in all eight divisions – Dhaka, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Khulna, Barishal, Sylhet, Rangpur, and Mymensingh – was above 36 degrees Celsius.   

Children play at the Crescent Lake in Dhaka's parliament area amid scorching summer heat on Sunday. Photo: Abdullah Al Momin

A temperature between 36 and 38 degrees Celsius is considered mild heat wave while 38 to 40 degrees Celsius moderate heat wave and above 40 degrees Celsius is extreme heat wave.

The highest temperature in Bangladesh in past two decades was 42.2 degrees Celsius in Jashore while the highest ever after independence was 45.1 degrees Celsius on May 30, 1972.

Meteorologist Nazmul Haque at the Meteorological Department said the heat wave will continue on Friday.

A low over the southern Bay of Bengal has intensified into a well-marked low and is likely to intensify further into a depression in the next 24 hours, the Met Office said in a weather forecast in the evening.

The depression may cause squally weather, storms and rains along the coast, but it is also expected to bring some cold air.