Heat deaths continue to soar

Sunday claims 197 lives in different districts

• Heat wave to continue for another 48 hours
• 28 died in Prakasam, 22 in NelloreA
• Govt puts death toll at 524 since April
• Monsoon wait to be a bit longer

A record number of 197 people lost their lives on Sunday in heat-related deaths in the State. The casualties occurred as people of the State had not found any respite from the scorching heat when a rise in the maximum and minimum temperatures was reported.

The maximum temperature of 47 degrees Celsius was recorded at Tuni and Visakhapatnam and 46 degrees in Kakinada and Vijayawada, 45 in Machilipatnam, Bapatla, Rentachintala and Ramauguindam. The catastrophe is likely to continue for another couple of days. Hyderabad recorded 41 degrees Celsius. The severity of heat is attributed to the blowing of winds from western India, particularly UP, Odisha, Chhattisgarh. Its impact is likely to be felt more in the Coastal Andhra and Telangana regions. The Met office on Sunday said, "Severe heat wave conditions would prevail in the districts of Prakasham, Guntur, Krishna, East and West Godavari and Visakhapatnam, Warangal and Karimnagar districts during the next 48 hours". A total of 22 people died in Nellore district whereas Prakasam accounted for 28 deaths. Some 15 persons died in Guntur and four in Vizianagaram . A total of 18 each died in East Godavari and Nalgonda district followed by 17 in Warangal and seven in Srikakulam districts. The death toll registered in other districts was- 15 in Guntur; 12 each in Karimnagar, West Godavari and Visakhapatnam, two in Adilabad; six each in Nizamabad; two in Mahaboobnagar and five each in Krishna and Kurnool, two each in Khammam, Chittoor, Rangareddy, Adilabad, Mahboobnagar and four each inMedak and Vizianagarm.

Meanwhile, the State government said on Saturday that 524 people had died since April with Adilabad, Karimnagar and Khammam accounting for more deaths. The Disaster Management Commissioner T Radha reiterated that the heat wave conditions were likely to continue till the onset of the south-west monsoon. Meanwhile, as temperatures zoom northwards, the wait for south-west monsoon could be a bit longer with the weatherman saying the annual rains would arrive in Kerala only next week. "There is no further progress as yet," India Meteorological Department's (IMD) chief forecaster D Sivananda Pai told PTI when asked about the progress of monsoon. Weather scientists said conditions were becoming favourable for further advance of monsoon over some parts of the Bay of Bengal during the next three days. However, scientists do not see this as an indication towards an early onset over Kerala. A