The toll due to the severe heat wave gripping Andhra Pradesh and Orissa for the last 14 days has shot up to 665.

On Thursday alone, Andhra Pradesh witnessed 63 deaths. Orissa has seen 89 deaths in the last two weeks.

Andhra Pradesh Relief Commissioner D C Rosaiah told rediff.com on Thursday that as many as 833 people were affected by sunstroke.

Nalgonda district continued to top the list of fatalities with 119 deaths reported so far, followed by East Godavari (85), West Godavari, Prakasam and Karimnagar (52 each), Guntur (46), Krishna (37) and Nellore (30).

The toll in other districts included 16 in Warangal, 12 in Chittoor, nine in Khammam, six in Adilabad, five each in Mahbubnagar and Rangareddy, four each in Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam and Kurnool, two in Adilabad and one in Cuddapah.

No fatalities have been reported from Hyderabad, Medak, Anantapur and Vizianagaram districts so far.

Rosaiah, who reviewed the situation with senior officials said, "The health department has been asked to step up measures in the affected districts to reduce the number of casualties."

Officials said that most of the victims were poor daily wage labourers, rickshaw pullers, construction workers and street hawkers

Homeless people such as beggars, elderly destitutes and street urchins also figure among the victims.

In Orissa the heat wave, though not as severe as its neighbour, is expected to continue for next 48 hours at the least.

Bhubaneswar, the capital, witnessed 44.7 degrees on Thursday. Titilagarh in western Orissa, on Wednesday, had witnessed 48.7 degrees, the highest this summer.

Inputs from Giridhar Gopal in Bhubaneswar

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What do you think about the story? Read what others have to say: Number of User Comments: 7 Sub: heat wave as a result of global warming hotter days to come by in the next few decades instead of wasting time and energy talking about IT and giving a lot of importance to the bogus comapnaies in Hyderabad I think the government ... Posted by Rajesh Sub: heat wave i have gone thru ur message. u have lighted more about AP but least about ORISSA . though the cost of living in AP better ... Posted by karunakarbehera Sub: heat wave in AP hiya ur info says 665 people died but the same time now BBC news channel is reporting 800 plus have died/ am sure there is ... Posted by gopi Sub: So much for the Cyber Naidu Just wondering what Cyber Naidu is doing in Cyderabad about the heat wave. Putting more STPs ? IT cannot solve the problems arising from lack ... Posted by Sanjay Sub: comments It is just unbelievable. Adequate water and salt intake and body cooling could have prevented all the deaths. Amulances should be deployed to transfer all ... Posted by Dr Harsha Reddi