A searing heatwave in central Pakistan has killed at least 84 people with temperatures as high as 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) in the past week, officials said Sunday.
At least 33 people have died and hundreds of others were admitted to hospitals after fainting due to heatstroke and gastroenteritis during the past 24 hours, the health minister for Punjab province, Tahir Javed, told AFP.
Health officials said Friday that 51 people had died up to then.
Streets remained deserted in the central city of Multan and neighbouring districts where most of the deaths have occurred.
The meteorological department has forecast mainly hot and dry weather for the coming week.
Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Thursday urged Pakistanis to pray for rain to end a continued dry spell that has raised fears of a serious drought. No significant rain is predicted for the next two months.
A heatwave in 2003 killed more than 230 Pakistanis.
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