Heat wave disrupts normal life in Nepalgunj

Nepalgunj, April 15

The scorching heatwave for the past few days has disrupted normal life in Nepalgunj, which is also known as the country’s hottest city.

According to the Nepalgunj-based Meteorological Forecasting Department, temperature in Nepalgunj shot up above 40 degree Celsius with officials predicting that the mercury levels would rise further.

The city which borders India has not seen rainfall since the onset of the summer season.

Employees attending the government and non-government offices have markedly thinned, but the market is seeing a boom in sales of cold drinks and seasonal fruits. City dwellers are taking to cucumber, watermelon, ice creams and ice lollies.

The number of patients at hospitals has also increased with patients reporting communicable diseases, including typhoid, diarrhoea, constipation, nausea and other illnesses resulting from heat, according to doctors.

The Nepal Electricity Authority has published a new power outage schedule for the city. Power cuts have been reduced to nine hours a day with demand for electricity increasing with increasing temperature.

Doctors have advised avoiding exposure to the sun, drinking lots of water and wearing light cotton clothes.