Bhubaneswar, March 21 (IANS) Mercury crossed the 40 degrees Celsius mark in five Orissa towns Sunday, the weatherman said.

The district headquarters of Malkangiri, 618 km from here, which has been recording a high of more than 40 degrees Celsius for the last few days, recorded the maximum of 41.2 degrees Celsius Sunday.

Four other towns also recorded day temperatures of over 40 degrees Celsius. Jharsaguda saw a high of 40.8 degrees Celsius, Bhubaneswar (40.3), Sambalpur (40.2) and Titilagarh (40).

According to an official at the regional meteorological centre, the heat wave condition will continue to prevail for the next 48 hours.