The ongoing heat spell has prompted the state health department to issue an advisory asking people to stay hydrated, avoid being under the sun and take breaks in a shade if they have to be outdoors for long.
The advisory, issued on Tuesday, says people should keep drinking water at intervals even if they do not feel thirsty. Those without restrictions on salt intake can mix a bit of salt with the water.
The Alipore Met office recorded a maximum temperature of 38.6 degrees on Tuesday, three notches above normal and a notch higher than the day before. The minimum was 28.6, three degrees above normal.
There is no immediate relief in sight from the scorching conditions, the Met office has said.
Doctors stressed the need to stay hydrated. “It is good to have some salt added to the water you are drinking. This is because sweating leads to a loss of water and electrolytes. Drinking plain water will only compensate for the loss of water from the body because of sweating,” said Chandramouli Bhattacharya, a specialist in infectious diseases at Peerless Hospital. “Salt depletion can lead to cramps.”
Bhattacharya said that while drinking plenty of fluids is advised, there are people with existing conditions like heart diseases, cirrhosis of liver and chronic kidney disease whose fluid intake is restricted. “They cannot drink plenty of fluids. They should avoid remaining outdoors. If they do not drink fluids and remain outdoors, they may get dehydrated. On the other hand, if they drink plenty of fluids, their conditions may get aggravated,” he said.
While Kolkata is not unfamiliar with a simmering April, the heat is usually accompanied by a reasonably high humidity level, something that is missing this time, said the Met office. The minimum relative humidity in the atmosphere, a marker of the moisture content in the air in the driest part of the day, was 22 per cent on Tuesday.
The advisory says people should wear loose and comfortable clothes. If one experiences dizziness or headache, feels feverish or like vomiting after staying under the sun, they should immediately look for a cooler place and rest. The use of umbrella has been advised.
The advisory also asks people not to drink tea or coffee many times a day and avoid alcohol and chilled water.
The advisory urges social welfare organisations to set up stalls to distribute drinking water to people on the street.
Met officials said dry northwesterly winds are dominant in the atmosphere and there is no weather system nearby that could bring rain. “Summers in Kolkata are usually marked by hot and humid days. But this time, the moisture content has been on the lower side,” said G.K. Das, director, India Meteorological Department, Kolkata.
“When humidity is on the higher side, sufficient heating can lead to the formation of rain-bearing thunderclouds. But in the absence of enough moisture, the heat is dry and there is no chance of rainfall in the next few days.”
The Met office usually declares “heat wave” conditions in a place when the maximum temperature is five degrees above normal.
“That condition was met only in Diamond Harbour and Digha on Tuesday. But in the coming days, the Celsius in Kolkata is also likely to touch the 40-degree mark,” said an official.