Dhaka - Icy Himalayan winds triggered a cold wave which swept across Bangladesh Thursday causing temperatures to plummet and leaving at least 25 people dead, officials said. The day temperatures fell sharply in the rice- and sugarcane- growing northern region where 22 deaths were recorded in worst-hit Rangpur district, the Meteorological Office said.
The nights were even colder with mercury dropping below 8.5 degrees Celsius on Wednesday.
Most fatalities were due to pneumonia, diarrhoea and viral infections, said emergency doctor Abdul Jalal at the state-run Rangpur hospital.
The cold wave victims were mostly young children and the aged from poor and low-income families living in straw huts and fragile dwellings exposed to the chill winds blowing from the north.
Three deaths were reported from the bordering Dinajpur district while people with asthma and other respiratory problems in northern Bangladesh's biggest city Bogra were rushed to hospitals.
The weather aggravated with winter drizzle and dense fog enveloping the capital Dhaka disrupting life and businesses with thousands of commuters stranded at ferry and bus stations.
Most public transports suspended services with trains running behind schedule.
