[gallery type="slideshow" ids="106995,106994,106993,106992,106987,106988,106989,106990,106991,106986,106985,106984,106983,106982,106981"] ​As El Niño hits the most extreme of its 12- to 18-month cycle, large swaths of Burma have been beleaguered by high temperatures and water shortages. Summer typically does not begin until March, but temperatures are already relatively intense. Meteorologists have predicted that water shortages in many parts of Burma could be ratcheted up by as much as three-fold in the coming months. In Rangoon, temperatures have already soared to 35 degrees Celsius in recent days, forcing people to take shelter under any shade they can find. In Dala, a town across the river from Rangoon, water scarcity is more palpable. Irrawaddy photographers Hein Htet and Pyay Kyaw recently documented how the residents of Rangoon and Dala have been coping with the country’s intense weather conditions.