Record monsoon rains and melting glaciers in Pakistan’s northern mountains caused floods that affected 33 million people and killed at least 1,290, including 453 children. The flood, caused by climate change, is still spreading. Lake Manchar, which is used for water storage, had already reached dangerous levels and the increased pressure posed a threat to surrounding areas in the country’s southern Sindh province, Sindh Irrigation Minister Jam Khan Shoro said. He said about 100,000 people would be affected by the breach in five councils, but it would help save more residential clusters and also help reduce water levels in other worst-hit areas. “By causing the breach we tried to save Sehwan town. Water levels in Johi and Mehar towns in Dadu district will be reduced by this breach in the lake,” Shoro told Reuters on Sunday. Makeshift tents for people displaced by floods are seen in Pakistan’s Balochistan province on Sunday. (Fida Hussain/AFP/Getty Images) It was unclear how many of the 100,000 asked to leave their homes would actually do so. Some flood evacuees have complained that shelters are full, while others are reluctant to leave their belongings. In addition to historic rainfall, southern Pakistan has had to contend with increased flooding as a surge of water surged into the Indus River. The country has already received almost three times the 30-year average rainfall in the three months to August, a total of 390.7mm. Sindh province, population 50 million, was hardest hit, with 464 percent more rainfall than the 30-year average. Being downstream of the Indus River, the southern parts of the country have seen swollen river waters flowing from the north. Pakistan’s limited dams and reservoirs are already overflowing and cannot be used to stem downstream flows. Pedestrians cross a section of road damaged by floods in Pakistan’s northern Kalam Valley on Sunday. (Sherin Zada/The Associated Press) The Tarbela dam in the northwest has been operational for weeks, according to data from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Downstream in Sindh, dams are under pressure with the Indus River at high flood level, the NDMA said in its latest status report.
More rain is expected
Authorities also braced for more rain in the north over the next few days until Tuesday. “Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has predicted that weak monsoon currents from the Arabian Sea are penetrating the upper and central parts of the country, which then cause rain-winds/thunderstorms,” NDMA said in an advisory. He warned local administrations to be on heightened alert and restrict vehicular movement in areas prone to flash floods and landslides, as well as those near water channels. It said some populations in the north could be at risk and recommended “early evacuation”.
‘One of the worst climate-induced disasters’
The death toll from the floods overnight rose by 25, of which 12 were children, according to an NDMA update. The United Nations children’s agency, UNICEF, said there was a risk of “many more” child deaths from disease. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday appealed to UNICEF and other global agencies to help control child deaths. “As Pakistan battles one of its worst climate-induced disasters, among those most adversely affected are children,” Sharif tweeted. On Sunday, flights carrying aid from UNICEF, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates landed in Pakistan.
