Brace for extreme heat on March 20, says ministry

The equinox on March 20 will result in extreme heat while the strong El Nino phenomenon is the cause of current high temperatures in the north of the peninsula, the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry says. "The equinox which causes extreme hot weather is expected to take place on March 20," minister Datuk Seri Madius Tangau said in a statement. The current heatwave in certain areas was caused by dry climate because of a strong El Nino phenomenon, he said. He said the dry spell with a prolonged absence of rain would bring higher temperatures in the north of the peninsula, mainly in Kedah, Perlis and Penang, while the Klang Valley would experience warmer-than-usual temperatures at night. Up until March 10, the highest temperatures recorded was 38.5 degrees Celsius in Alor Star, Kedah and Chuping, Perlis. It was reported that the exceptionally hot weather over the past few days has pushed electricity consumption to its highest in the peninsula, recording an all-time peak demand of 17,175MW on Wednesday. National utility company Tenaga Nasional Bhd said this broke the previous record in peak demand of 16,901MW registered on June 6, 2014. The peninsula's current total installed capacity stands at 22,220MW, out of which 11,818MW is TNB's own capacity while the rest is the total installed capacity of independent power producers. – March 12, 2016.]]>