KARACHI: Hot spell persisted in Karachi for the fourth consecutive day with temperatures likely to reach 41 degrees Celsius, the Meteorological Office said on Monday.
Mercury soared to 33 degrees Celsius early in the morning (by 10:0 AM) and it was expected to hit between 39 to 41 degrees Celsius, with perceived temperatures of up to 45 degrees.
The current weather condition is attributed to a depression in the central Arabian Sea, likely to fizzle out by reaching the coast of the Indian state of Gujarat and parts of Sindh by Wednesday.
An official of the Pakistan Meteorological Department department said a low air pressure was present in Gujarat and South Rajhastan, which had influenced the cool sea breeze in Karachi because of which the city had been surrounded by warmer winds blowing from Balochistan.
Also read: One death reported as mercury level remains high in cityOn Sunday, the temperature reached 42.5 degrees Celsius with 16 victims of sun stroke brought to different hospitals in the city, according to the city’s health director Dr Zafar Aijaz. The baking Sunday sun was reported to have caused one one heatstroke-related death, that of 63-year-old Zahid who was brought to the Karachi Institute of Heart Diseases where he was said to have allegedly died of a heatstroke.
However, with memories of the previous bout of heat which claimed over 2,000 lives, the city's roads remained deserted in the afternoon as residents advisably preferred to remain indoors. Similar scenes are expected to be witnessed on the streets of Karachi today.
The Sindh government has declared an emergency in all the hospitals across Karachi with health authorities on high alert.
Weather experts have advised citizens to consume more water and remain indoors in the face of rising temperatures.