KARACHI, June 22: The people of the city, as indeed those elsewhere in the Northern hemisphere, experienced the longest day of the year as the summer solstice occurred on Thursday accompanied by the highest rise of mercury in the season.

The demand for juices and cold drinks increased remarkably as the maximum temperature swelled to 41 degrees Centigrade with 39 per cent humidity.

The people also complained of shortage of ice in many localities where ice sellers reportedly overcharged customers. The juice vendors and cold drink spots also did roaring businesses.

The shortage of cold water at roadside hotels also led to altercations between customers and the hotel owners in many parts. “How can we provide the customers with cold water when there is no ice available in the city,” a hotel owner remarked.

Zarqa Jabeen, a resident in Saddar, said it was a tough day for her and her two little daughters due to the sizzling weather. “It seemed as if our refrigerator had just stopped functioning,” she said.

The worst-affected were the construction labourers who braved the heat wave with their heads covered with pieces of cloth. At different construction sites, many of them were seen resting in shades.

Those waiting for public transport at bus stops in the scorching sunlight wished if they could find some shade.

A very small number of people also reached the city beach at Sea View, which otherwise wore a deserted look. Attendants at the parking lots there said hardly a dozen cars entered the area during the day.

A Met office official told Dawn that the heat wave in the city would be over in a couple of days.

He said it was a routine phenomenon during May and June when the temperature rose over 40 degrees, as the see breezes were cut off due to dense clouds on the south of the Bay of Bengal and north of the Arabian Sea.