50 die as cold spell continues in Bangladesh
| A total of 50 people died in parts of Bangladesh due to the ongoing cold spell accompanied by chilly wind and drizzles since November, reports Xinhua. The figure was reported by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) under the Ministry of Health on Thursday. Ayesha Akhter, assistant director at DGHS, told Xinhua that 17 people died due to Acute Respiratory Infection across Bangladesh from Nov. 1 to Dec. 25. During the same period, 33 others died from diarrhea and other diseases, she said. Life in the capital and elsewhere in the country was severely disrupted for days. The cold spell and inclement weather particularly affected people in the northern region and those living in the open. The Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BND) on Thursday recorded the lowest temperature of this year in a border town in Bangladesh’s north. AK Nazmul, a meteorologist in Dhaka, told Xinhua Thursday, “Mercury plunged to its lowest 5.7 degrees centigrade in the country’s northern most sub-district, Tentulia, within Panchagarh district, 468 km away of capital Dhaka.” It has been cloudy in Dhaka for the last couple of days. BMD recorded Dhaka’s temperature at 12.5 degrees centigrade on Thursday. The freezing weather may continue for days, Nazmul said. Enditem |