Death toll up due to over-high temperature

Death toll up due to over-high temperature

By Si Thu Lwin   |   Monday, 05 May 2014

Soaring temperatures are resulting in a spate of funerals as more people succumb to the heat, say Mandalay city officials. Cemeteries are reporting a sharp rise in the number of cremations since the Thingyan festival.

"Though we'd been seeing about five funerals a day in previous months, the cremation rate has increased to nearly 20 bodies a day in late April because of the extreme temperature rise after Thingyan," said U Myint Wai, head of the crematorium at Aye Yeit Nein Cemeter.

He said most of dead ranged in age from 40 to 70 years, and had died because of the heat.

"The number rose to 30 to 40 bodies a day in the fourth week of the month, compared to about 10 a day in previous months," said U Kyaw Ngwe, from South Inn and North Inn Cemetery, Amarapura township.

Aye Yeit Nein Cemetery in Kyar Ni Kan village handles funerals from Aung Myay Thar San and Chan Aye Thar San townships, while South Inn and North Inn cemetery is responsible for Mahar Aung Myay, Chan Mya Tharsi, Pyigyitagun and Amarapura townships.

Free funeral service associations in Mandalay confirmed that most April services were for those who had passed away because of the extreme heat.

"We have arranged about 10 funerals a day, up from three or four a day in previous months," said U Kyaw Shein, of Chan Mya Thukha social organisation in Chan Mya Thar Si township.

According to the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology, the highest maximum daily temperature in the last week of April was about 42 Celsius.

Translation by Zar Zar Soe

Source: http://www.news.myanmaronlinecentre.com/2014/05/06/death-toll-up-due-to-over-high-temperature/