Showers bring relief from heat, power cuts in Ctg
An hour's spell of shower yesterday brought a sigh of relief for Chittagong dwellers who were struggling to cope with the baking heatwave coupled with frequent power cuts and rise in humidity.
The mid-day rain in the city and in the early morning in the outskirts helped temperatures to fall, cooling off the residents roasting under the unrelenting and blistering sun for the past week.
With the advent of summer, Patenga Met officials said the mercury in Chittagong had risen to 32C last week, 3 to 5C higher than last month's.
The 92% humidity in the city last week only added to the dilemma as temperatures refused to go down.
The combination of high heat and humidity makes it hard for the human body to cool itself because sweat does not evaporate efficiently.
The asphalt on the roads, concrete pavements and buildings “re-radiated” the oppressive heat, forcing people and animals to struggle to keep cool.
Many were seen staying under the shade during the hottest hours while others sought refuge in cooling drinks like coconuts to ward off the heat.
One meteorologist of Patenga Met office, Sheikh Shahjahan Alam, said without heavy rains, the situation would linger up to the end of June.
Neither is the power cuts coming to a cease anytime soon. Power Development Board officials expect power generation to fall as the decrease in water level in Kaptai lake will surely affect its hydroelectric power plant's output.
Preferring anonymity, a PDB official of Chittagong zone said different power grids can supply the zone only 430 MW of electricity, a far cry from the total demand of 700 MW.
This results in power blackouts of six to eight hours every day in the city. The situation is worse outside.
People allege that they find it hard to cope with the random power outages both during daytime and nighttime as there is no fixed schedule.
Children, the elderly and especially students who are appearing for their HSC exams this month are the worst hit.
A resident of Chandgon Residential Area, Ataur Rahman, alleged that the rechargeable batteries or Instant Power Supply (IPS) machine he bought earlier failed to deliver during the power cuts as it barely gets the time to recharge.
Though the Hathaazri 100 MW Peaking Power Plant is situated in Uttara Residential Area, people here have to deal with severe power cuts, said a local, Sarwar Kamal.
“It is like the darkness prevailing under the candle which is shedding light all around,” he said.
He jokes, “When the electricity goes out in the middle of the night, the house turns into a furnace. Middle class families like us have a hard time dealing with this problem.”
It is unexpected that though Chittagong houses many power stations, its residents are suffering so much. “On a national perspective, power cuts on a small scale can be tolerated but not on the present scale,” he said.
Health experts advise avoiding dehydration by drinking plenty of fluids and staying under the shade.
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