KARACHI: The ongoing heatwave in the city is predicted to continue for three to four days, the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) stated on Saturday.

The hot and dry weather is forecasted to persist for at least the next 24 hours, it added. Temperatures are expected to go as high and low as 26° and 38-40° Celsius, respectively, Geo News reported.

The humidity level in the air was registered at 69%, PMD mentioned.

It was reported earlier that sea breeze – that usually keeps Karachi’s weather in check – is expected to give way to hot winds coming in from the plains of interior Sindh. Consequently, temperatures in the country are expected to surpass 40° Celsius.

A shallow westerly wave has started impacting northern parts of Pakistan, likely to persist for the next 36 hours, the department said.

For the next 24 hours, thunderstorms with rain, scattered dust, and gusty winds are predicted in Malakand, Hazara, Mardan, Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir, and some places in Peshawar, Kohat, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Faisalabad, Islamabad, and FATA.

Heat stroke management

More than a dozen hospitals, on Tuesday, set up heat stroke centres after PMD forecasted high temperatures in the city for the next three days. On Monday, the mercury surged to 40.5° Celsius in the metropolis with forecasts of a further rise in the temperature in the coming days.

Talking to Geo News, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre’s (JPMC) emergency services department head Dr Seemin Jamali said, “We are well prepared this time. We have a fully equipped emergency ward to accommodate all emergency heat [stroke] patients. Similarly, our medical wards are also prepared.”

Heat exhaustion and lethargy are the primary symptoms of a heat stroke, highlighted Dr Jamali.

On the other hand, Sindh Health Department officials commented on the matter as well. “To ensure that people are generally protected against the wave an advisory is being issued to all hospitals and medical facilities,” they said, according to a local media outlet.

Precautionary measures, including providing logistics support to district administration, training for ambulance and boat drivers, and establishing relief centres, etc., were discussed by Syed Salman Shah, DG PDMA Sindh.

It is, therefore, wiser to not go out during the peak sunlight hours to stay safe from a heatstroke. The use of ice packs, cold sheets, and wet towels is advised, and drinking more water is recommended.