Severe cold wave engulfed Bangladesh this week with record-breaking low temperatures, the coldest the country has seen since record-keeping started in 1948. At least 12 people, including 6 children, died of cold-related ailments in just 4 days. Temperatures in parts of Bangladesh dropped to 2.6 °C (36.7 °F) on Monday, January 8, 2018, well below average for the country used to mild winters. “It is the lowest temperature since authorities started keeping records in 1948,” Shamsuddin Ahmed, head of the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD), told AFP.
The previous record low of 2.8 °C (37 °F) was recorded in 1968, he added. The worst affected were country’s northern regions, where at least 12 people died of cold-related ailments, including 6 children in just 4 days in Rajshahi, Kurigram and Thakurgaon districts. However, unusually low temperatures also affected its southern regions. Capital Dhaka recorded 9.5 °C (49.1 °F) on Monday, the lowest temperature this season, BMD said. The city’s lowest temperature ever was 5.6 °C (42 °F) recorded in 1964. READ MORE
