Telangana in the Grip of Extended Heat Wave

 Hyderabad: The summer continued to sear Telangana with heatwaves reported from seven of the state’s three districts while 20 districts reported temperatures in excess of 45 degrees Celsius. The highest day temperature of 46.6ºC on Wednesday was recorded in Nalgonda district’s Gudapur, while the lowest reported high for the day was a still very much sizzling 43.1 ºC which was recorded in Khairtabad of Hyderabad city.

The Indian Meteorological Department has issued a prolonged heatwave, and heatwave warnings for several districts till the morning of May 6, with predictions of possible light to moderate rain or thundershowers between May 6 and May 8 in a few places over the state.

With the sizzling sun baking the air and the ground, the state health department has issued an 'Advisory For Protection Against Heat Wave' calling on people to take precautions and not ignore the heat and not step out of homes or stay in shaded cool areas to the extent possible over the next few days.

In the advisory, the director of health and family welfare urged people to be careful and not risk their health and lives by going out in the sun, especially between noon and 3 pm. The health official also said that the government has made arrangements by providing special beds, IV fluids, and essential medicines in all the public health facilities and ORS sachets would be available with ANMs/ASHAs/Anganwadi workers to meet any emergencies.

Meanwhile, the soaring temperatures have seen a dramatic rise in the demand for power supply in the GHMC area with the Telangana State Southern Power Distribution Company Limited saying it supplied 4,214 megawatts of electricity on April 30 within the GHMC limits. On April 26, the demand for power stood at 3,952 MW.

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation limits comprise Hyderabad district, and parts of Ranga Reddy, Medchal-Malkajgiri and Sangareddy districts. As per TSSPDCL figures, it serves a total of 60.92 lakhs consumers in this area, of which domestic consumers account for 50.14 lakh, while the rest are non-domestic, commercial, and industrial consumers.

The power utility said the maximum demand for power in GHMC areas has been on the rise since 2022 when the highest demand was 3435 MW, which increased to 3756MW in 2023 and further rose to 4214MW this year.

Health Advisory

WHAT NOT TO DO

Avoid getting out in the sun, especially between 12:00 noon and 03:00 pm

Avoid strenuous activities when outside in the afternoon

Do not go out barefoot

Avoid cooking during peak summer hours. Open doors and windows to ventilate cooking area adequately

Avoid alcohol, tea, coffee and carbonated soft drinks or drinks with large amount of sugar- as these actually lead to loss of more body-fluid or may cause stomach cramps

Avoid high-protein food and do not eat stale food

Do not leave children or pets in parked vehicles

DANGER SIGNS

Seek immediate medical attention from nearby government health facilities if any of the following is observed:

Altered mental sensorium with disorientation: confusion and agitation, irritability, ataxia, seizure and coma

Hot, red and dry skin

Body temperature more than 40.0C or 104.0F

Throbbing headache

Anxiety, Dizziness, fainting and lightheadedness

Muscle weakness or cramps

Nausea and vomiting

Rapid heart beat

Rapid, shallow breathing