As the nation experiences its eighth cycle of monsoon rains, Pakistan’s Minister for Climate Change on Thursday raised the alarm that no fewer than 903 persons had perished there as a result of the summer’s extreme rains and flooding.
Africa Daily news, New York reports that Pakistan is currently seeking foreign support.
This ‘humanitarian disaster,’ according to Sherry Rehman, has left thousands of people without food and shelter. He said ‘As we speak, thousands are homeless without shelter, without food. And the communication lines have been cut off. It is a serious humanitarian disaster.’
She added in a tweet that 326 children were among the deceased. She claimed that the authorities are making use of every tool at their disposal to assist the victims.
According to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) of the United Nations, 2.3 million individuals in Pakistan have been impacted by torrential rains and flooding since mid-June.
As stated by the aid organisation, at least 95,350 residences have already been damaged. The two most ‘affected provinces in terms of human and infrastructural impact’ are the southwestern province of Balochistan and the southeast province of Sindh, according to a media announcement from OCHA on Tuesday.
OCHA reports that approximately 3,000 kilometers (1,864 miles) of roads and 129 bridges have been devastated, restricting access to flood-affected areas, and more than 504,000 livestock were lost, almost all of them in Balochistan.
More international financing is required, according to the government’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), for flood relief, reconstruction, and the repair of destroyed infrastructure.
Rehman, who was speaking at an NDMA briefing on Wednesday, likened the situation to record flooding in 2010 but said much of Balochistan, south Punjab, and 30 districts of the Sindh region were facing an ‘unprecedented humanitarian disaster.’
‘People are adrift, livestock and crops are damaged,’ Rehman said.
On Wednesday, Rehman who addressed the NDMA meeting compared the condition to a flooding that happens in 2010, However, he stated that a major part of Balochistan, south Punjab, and 30 districts of the Sindh region were suffering an ‘unprecedented humanitarian disaster.’
Rehman said ‘People are adrift, livestock and crops are damaged,’
Schools in Balochistan and Sindh have been suspended in preparation for the predicted end-of-week comeback of the monsoon season, which is likely to bring with it more severe rain and flooding.
Based on a tweet from the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan, China announced on Wednesday that it would be delivering essential humanitarian help to Pakistan. In addition to $300,000 in cash for immediate relief, the items would include 25,000 tents for Pakistan’s flood-affected areas.
Every year, monsoon rains hit Pakistan, but this year’s downpours were especially devastating, according to Rehman. In Karachi, the country’s largest metropolis, 400 millimeters (nearly 15 inches) of rain fell over the period of several hours.
‘No city is structured or geared up or that climate resilient that it can cope with this amount of water in such a short time she stated. ‘This is a torrential downpour of biblical proportions.’
According to a report from the National Disaster Management Authority issued earlier in August, July was the wettest month in three decades, with 133% more rain than the 30-year normal. According to the disaster agency, Balochistan, which borders Iran and Afghanistan, received 305% more rainfall than usual.
