INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
heat wave has reached 54, officials said on Friday.Most of the victims linked to the "overwhelming heat" were in the Montreal area, which
recorded 28 fatalities, metropolitan health authorities told AFP in an email.The other victims were reported in the southwest of the
French-Canadian province, the Quebec health ministry said.On Thursday, Environment Canada had forecast a maximum temperature of 35 C (95 F)
but said the heat index would make it feel like 45 C.The mercury has since June 29 regularly topped 30 C, accompanied by stifling humidity
levels, but temperatures should drop back to seasonal averages from Saturday."Looking at the weather forecast, we are waiting for a return
to normal in the coming hours," said Health Ministry spokeswoman Noemie Vanheuverzwijn.Most of the victims in Montreal were men in their 50s
or older, and living in vulnerable conditions without air conditioning, regional public health director Mylene Drouin has said.Neighboring
Ontario has also been coping with high temperatures but no deaths have been reported there.In 2010, around 100 people in the Montreal area
died when extreme heat stifled the area.(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is
published from a syndicated feed.)
