BHUBANESWAR: One person died after a tree fell on him during a
thunderstorm in
Bargarh district on Sunday afternoon. Several areas in the state, including the capital city, witnessed heavy rain, gusty winds and thunderstorms in the second half of the day.
The deceased was identified as Nimai Gochhayat (50) of Patikarpalli village in Bargarh. Another person,
Rama Bhoi, of the same village, was injured.
While many trees were uprooted and several areas went without power, the rain brought relief to the people. Districts in the interiors of Odisha havehad already started recording temperatures of over 40°C.
"High temperature and an incursion of moist air cause Nor'wester rain and thunderstorms during summer. Such conditions will continue till April 3 and 4," said the director of IMD's Bhubaneswar centre, Sarat Chandra Sahu.
The IMD had earlier issued a Nor'wester alert for 12 districts on Sunday afternoon. "The heat was unbearable in the morning. The rain brought a lot of relief. Unscheduled powercuts have made life miserable for us," said Binayak Panigrahi, a resident of Balangir.
"After sizzling heat throughout the day, the rain cooled down the city," said Ipsita Nandi, a student of Bhubaneswar, which recorded a maximum temperature of 35.8°C on Sunday.
Sonepur recorded the highest temperature of the state - 41.2°C - followed by Bolangir (39.2°C) and Bhawanipatna (39°C).
