The heatwave is sweeping in Dhaka, Rajshahi, Khulna and Barisal divisions and some parts of Chandpur and Noakhali districts. The highest temperature recorded on Tuesday was 37.6 degrees Celsius in Jessore and Meherpur while it was 36.8 degrees Celsius in the capital. The forecast that the weather may remain dry and unchanged for some more days is likely to make the situation more desperate. As per exerts this blistering hot weather is enough to breed chicks from eggs provided right atmosphere can be created.
What is more important at this situation is how to protect people from heat borne diseases like fever, diarrhoea and other diseases resulting from acute dehydration and taking food from wayside shops. Reports said diarrhoea patients have already started crowding at the city’s Mohakhali Cholera Hospital and other treatment facilities. Health experts believe the government has many things to do in this situation without leaving people to the vagaries of nature. There must be health volunteers at busy places to rescue heat-affected people and send them homes or hospitals. NGOs should also take strong public awareness programme to warn people about risks of stroke and other fatalities asking them to stay indoor.
In Dhaka city, day labourers, rickshaw-pullers and traffic police were found suffering from difficulties to continue work over the past few days and had to take frequent breaks. Roads, city malls, open air markets in both rural and urban areas were found deserted during noon as people prefer to avoid scorching mid-day weather. The worst sufferers are school and college going students and office goers in this situation.
Social media is abuzz now how to prepare people to face the heat wave now and that may hit the country again until the end of summer. It is natural that people should frequently drink more pure water as protection against sweating. We must also say heatwave must be treated as a natural calamity and be faced accordingly. More people die every year from heatwave attacks, which is huge in number in India and Pakistan but no less in Bangladesh.
