A 45-year-old man died owing to excessive heat, the sixth such death to be recorded in the Northern peninsula as the country continues to be scorched in an unprecedented heat wave that started in March.
Hospital officials identified the latest victim as 45-year-old Sivagnanam Jayakumar who was a resident of Jaffna.
The other five who died owing to the hot weather were also from Jaffna that is experiencing temperatures of around 33 Celsius and above.
The victim had earlier in the day consumed alcohol with friends and was later found by his daughter lying motionless in the front yard of his house. He was pronounced dead on admission to hospital.
A medical autopsy revealed that the man had died owing to acute dehydration.
The authorities have repeatedly warned the public of the ongoing heat wave and people have been encouraged to consume a lot of water throughout the day as a precaution.
Experts have attributed the dry spell to Climate Change that is also being experienced in several parts of South Asia. – LB
