Western Odisha continues to sizzle, mercury down in coastal

Western Odisha continued to sizzle under heat wave today though mercury dipped in most of the coastal areas.
Titlagarh turned out to be the hottest place in the state at 46.5 degrees Celsius, followed by Hirakud, also located in the western region, at 45.4 degrees Celsius and Bhawanipatna at 45 degrees Celsius, the meteorological centre here said.
The mercury stood at 44.5 degrees Celsius at Bolangir, 44 degrees Celsius at Sundargarh, 43.4 degrees Celsius at Jharsuguda and 43.1 degrees Celsius at Sonepur.
At least 11 places in the state recorded a high of above 40 degrees Celsius, it said.
As many places in the coastal belt experienced rains and thunderstorm last evening, the mercury level dropped to 38.3 degrees Celsius in Bhubaneswar from 40.5 degrees Celsius recorded yesterday.

The maximum temperature in neighbouring Cuttack was 37 degrees Celsius, while it was 34.2 degrees Celsius in Balasore and 34 degrees Celsius in Puri.
Meanwhile, death toll due to sunstroke remained unchanged at 20, according to Special Relief Commissioner's office.