LAHORE: Slight moisture from an approaching fresh westerly wave lowered temperatures by one or two degrees Celsius in the plains of the country including Lahore on Sunday but still it created mugginess that was energy-sapping.

Moisture enhanced the heat index. The maximum temperature at 8pm, 39 degrees C in Lahore, Bahawalnagar and Faisalabad, proved unbearable in the presence of humidity that made wind somewhat heavy and hot. The temperature at that time of Saturday was 42 degrees C but it was less nerve taxing.

The Met department indicated slightly lowered temperatures in Sindh, adjoining south Punjab and Balochistan which have been especially affected by the current heat wave and recording critical high temperatures from 50 to 52 degrees C.

It said Sibbi, Jacobabad, Shaheed Benazirabad and Bhakkar recorded 50 degrees C maximum temperature, Larkana, Moenjodero and Noorpul Thal 49, Dadu, Sukkur, Rohri and Padidan 48, R Y Khan and D I Khan 47.

The maximum temperature in Lahore dropped from Saturday’s 45 degrees C to 43 degrees C. But 29pc humidity in the air created mugginess, forcing people to stay indoors. Those not affording room air-conditioners or swimming pools of hotels or elite clubs spent their day at the poor-embracing city canal which remained crowded from Jallo to Thoker Niaz Beg. The coolness of the water was the attraction against the harsh weather and there was no consideration for its pollution by the sewage of the residential colonies mushroomed along the canal.

The Met department says the westerly wave will give the direly needed break from Monday to Tuesday, keeping temperatures low to some extent for some days. Afterwards, they will again rise to the critical level and remain so by July 1 due to dry weather.

It forecasts rain-thunderstorm with strong gusty winds, dust storm at scattered places of upper KP (Malakand, Hazara, Peshawar, Kohat, Mardan divisions), Islamabad, upper Punjab (Sargodha, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Lahore divisions), Fata, GB and Kashmir in the next 24 hours).

Rain-thunderstorm, dust raising winds and dust storm are expected at isolated places of D I Khan, Bannu, Multan, D G Khan, Quetta, Zhob, Sukkur, Larkana and Shaheed Benazirabad divisions.

Hot and dry weather would persist over rest of the country.

Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2016