Mercury hits 50 degree centigrade in Baghdad
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AA) – Temperatures in Iraq’s capital Baghdad, which averaged between 45 and 48 degrees Celsius in July, rose to 50 degrees Celsius on Saturday afternoon.
The Met Department said that temperatures will remain elevated until Monday.
To make matters worse, citizens are dealing with frequent power cuts. Only three to five hours of electricity per day is being provided by the national grid in Baghdad.
The people of Baghdad receive electricity from neighborhood generators in exchange for money.
Low-income families cannot benefit from this service.
Speaking to the media, Settar Ali, who sells water to passers-by on Alavi Street in central Baghdad, said: “It’s so hot. There is no electricity at home and I’m on the streets to put food on the table for my children and pay my rent. I sprinkle water on my face to cool off.”
With climate change showing its disastrous affects the world over, temperatures are on a searing all-time high in warmer areas, creating difficulties including the rising incidence of ill health due to heatstroke.