A heat wave in two of India’s most populous states has overwhelmed hospitals, filled a morgue to capacity and disrupted power, forcing staff to use books to cool patients, as officials investigate a death toll that has reached nearly 170.
In the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, 119 people have died from heat-related illnesses over the past several days while neighboring Bihar state reported 47 fatalities, local news reports and health officials said.
“So many people are dying from the heat that we are not getting a minute’s time to rest. On Sunday, I carried 26 dead bodies,” said Jitendra Kumar Yadav, a hearse driver in Deoria town, 110km from Ballia.
Photo: AP
Other residents said they were scared of going outside after midmorning.
The largest hospital in Ballia district in Uttar Pradesh was unable to accommodate more patients.
Officials said that the morgue was full after 54 people, all of whom were elderly with health issues, died during the heat wave.
Some families were asked to take the bodies of their relatives home.
On Sunday, Uttar Pradesh Minister of Health Brajesh Pathak said that a two-member team would look into what caused the large number of deaths and investigate how many of them are directly related to heat.
While northern regions of India are known for sweltering heat during the summer months, temperatures have been consistently above normal, with highs reaching 43.5°C, Indian Meteorological Department data showed.
A heat wave is declared in India if temperatures are at least 4.5°C above normal, or if the temperature is above 45°C.
“We have been issuing heat wave warnings for the past few days,” said Atul Kumar Singh, a scientist at the department.
Despite the warnings, government officials did not ask people to brace for the heat until Sunday, when the death toll began to increase.
Adding to the heat stress are consistent power outages across the region, leaving people with no running water, fans or air conditioners.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said the government was taking measures to ensure an uninterrupted power supply.
He urged citizens to cooperate and use electricity judiciously.
“Every village and every city should receive adequate power supply during this scorching heat. If any faults occur, they should be promptly addressed,” he said in a statement on Friday.
There was chaos at the Ballia district hospital.
“All our staff has been here for three days straight and are completely overworked,” said Aditya Singh, an emergency medical officer.
The wards in the hospital had no functioning air conditioners, and cooling units that were installed were not working properly due to power fluctuations.
Officials said that severe cases were being shifted to hospitals in bigger cities nearby, and more doctors and medical resources were being sent to the district hospital to deal with the crisis.
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