Andhra Pradesh continued to be under severe heat wave conditions for the second consecutive day on Thursday even as 20 sunstroke deaths have been reported so far from different districts, particularly in Telangana and coastal Andhra regions.
Most of the sunstroke victims were either tender children or the elderly. Disaster Management additional commissioner Vinod Kumar Ekbote said the families which suffered sunstroke deaths would be paid a compensation of Rs. 50,000 each under the Apathbandhu scheme.
The heat is likely to be more oppressive next week as the phase of summer severity will set in on May 25 in the State. The heat showed no let-up anywhere in the State as no place in any region received even isolated showers. Rentachintala remained a veritable furnace for the second day, recording a temperature of 47.5 degree Celsius, the highest again in the State. Bapatla and Gannavaram reported the second and third highest recordings 46.6 C and 45.6 C for the day. Hyderabad experienced 43.4 C.
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In Khammam, the temperatures hovered above 50 C at some places in the coal belt as coal deposits underground remained an aiding radiating factor. Mining activity in the opencast mines, as a result, is said to have been affected.
Similarly, places close to coal mines in Karimnagar district also reported high temperatures with Ramagundam recording 46.3 C.
Other high temperatures recorded on Thursday were: Nandigama 45.4 C, Nizamabad 45.6 C, Nellore 44.7 C, Tirupati 43.5 C, Kurnool 43.4 C, Kakinada 43.3 C and Anantapur 41 C. According to a warning issued by the India Meteorological Department, parts of Telangana and Coastal Andhra will remain enveloped in severe heat wave conditions on Friday and Saturday also.
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