The Bangladesh Meteorological Department has issued a warning that the ongoing heatwave is likely to persist for 72 hours starting on Thursday morning.

The BMD cites increased moisture incursion as a factor contributing to the sustained uncomfortable conditions.

This announcement follows earlier alerts issued on April 19 and April 22, as the BMD continues to monitor and respond to the challenging weather patterns affecting the region.

Relentless high temperatures are wreaking havoc across Bangladesh, causing widespread sickness among people and fatalities among animals.

Children are among the worst affected by the ongoing heatwave, as child hospitalisation with pneumonia, asthma, breathing difficulties, and fever is on the rise in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country.

The unusual rise in temperatures poses grave risks, particularly to newborns, infants, and young children who are considered to be an especially vulnerable population to heat-related illnesses such as heat stroke and diarrhoea.

According to UNICEF’s 2021 Children’s Climate Risk Index, children in Bangladesh are at ‘extremely high risk’ of the impacts of climate change, said a press release on Wednesday.

The impacts of the heatwave conditions were found intense in the poultry sector, where birds died in large numbers, prompting the closure of farms.

The Dhaka University authorities on Sunday instructed to take online classes only until further notice due to ongoing heatwave.