Bhubaneswar, May 21: Odisha continued to reel under intense heatwave and humid conditions on Thursday, with temperatures soaring sharply across several districts.

As per the regional centre of the India Meteorological Department in Bhubaneswar, the mercury rose by 5.4 degrees Celsius compared to the previous day in the capital city, recording 41.6 degrees Celsius at 2:30 pm. On Wednesday, the city had recorded 36.2 degrees Celsius at the same time.

Western Odisha remained the worst affected as temperatures crossed 41 degrees Celsius in multiple districts by 11:30 a.m. Jharsuguda recorded 41.8 degrees Celsius, while Sambalpur registered 41.2 degrees Celsius. Hirakud recorded 40.6 degrees Celsius and Keonjhar touched 39.4 degrees Celsius. Bhubaneswar had already reached 38.4 degrees Celsius by late morning.

The scorching heat, coupled with high humidity, left people struggling with uncomfortable weather conditions across coastal as well as interior Odisha. According to the weather agency, humidity levels stood at 56 per cent at 11:30 am, pushing the heat index to nearly 53 degrees Celsius in some areas.

The IMD has issued an orange warning for heatwave to severe heatwave conditions in Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, Balangir and Nayagarh for the next 24 hours.

A yellow warning for heatwave conditions has also been issued for Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Bargarh, Angul, Subarnapur, Boudh and Sundargarh.

The weather office further warned of warm night conditions in Sambalpur and Balangir districts, while hot and humid weather is likely to prevail in districts including Balasore, Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Deogarh, Dhenkanal, Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, Malkangiri, Gajapati, Ganjam, Puri and Khordha.

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Apart from the heatwave, the IMD has also forecast thunderstorm activity in several districts. Thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty surface winds reaching 40-50 kmph are likely in Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur and Cuttack districts over the next 24 hours.

Similarly, thunderstorms with lightning and winds reaching 30-40 kmph are likely in Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, Rayagada, Koraput, Malkangiri, Gajapati, Ganjam, Puri and Khordha.

The weather department said the prevailing summer conditions are likely to continue for at least five more days, while Kalbaisakhi-related thunderstorm activity may persist across Odisha for the next seven days.