By DPA
Dhaka : A heat wave has pushed temperatures to a record high across Bangladesh, leaving at least 26 people dead in the past week, officials said Sunday.
Most victims of the heat were rice farmers working in terraces exposed to the blazing sun for long periods, hospital sources said.
Nearly 200 people, including several children, were admitted to hospitals with symptoms of heat stroke in recent weeks.
A media report said six people of the same village died in the heatwave in north-western Chuadanga district.
The meteorological office in Dhaka said many northern towns showed day temperatures reaching over 40 degrees Celsius, which is not normal in the Bangladeshi summer.
"The heat wave is discomforting because of the presence of a high level of humidity," Samarendra Karmakar, a director in the met office, said.