Flood warning issued for Sindh, Balochistan
GULAB SEEN REGAINING FORCE TOWARDS ARABIAN SEA
The weather department has warned of torrential rains across Sindh and several regions of Balochistan that may cause urban flooding in coastal cities and districts including Karachi.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department has requested all concerned authorities to remain on alert during the period from September 28 till October 3 when the bad weather has been forecast.
“A low-pressure area, remnant of the cyclonic storm Gulab, currently lying over central India is likely to track in northwest direction towards Indian Gujarat area. The system is likely to reemerge over the northeast Arabian Sea by September 29 night/ September 30 morning and regain intensity due to favourable environmental conditions,” reads the advisory issued by Met department’s tropical cyclone warning centre in Karachi.
Under the system’s influence, widespread rain-wind-thunderstorms with scattered heavy or very heavy falls, extremely heavy at times, are likely in Karachi, Hyderabad, Thatta, Badin, Mirpurkhas, Thaparkar, Umerkot, Sanghar, Shaheed Benazirabad, Naushehro Feroze, Tando Mohamad Khan, Tando Allah Yar, Dadu, Jamshoro, Sukkur, Larkana, Jacobabad, Shikarpur and Ghotki districts until Saturday.
Districts likely to face flooding are Karachi, Badin, Thatta, Hyderabad, Lasbela, Sonmiani, Dadu, Ormara, Pasni, Gwadar, Turbat, Jiwani.
In Balochistan, widespread rain-wind-thunderstorms with scattered heavy/very heavy rain, are likely in Bela, Awaran, Kech, Makran and Panjgur districts from today until Sunday, according to the advisory.
Possible impact
The Met Office has warned that sea conditions would remain rough/very rough with the occasional high surges. Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the sea from today until Saturday.
The districts likely to face urban flooding due to heavy rainfall are Karachi, Badin, Thatta, Hyderabad, Dadu, Lasbela, Sonmiani, Ormara, Pasni, Gwadar, Turbat and Jiwani. City authorities were cautioned that windstorms may also cause damages to vulnerable structures.
Many parts of the country have struggled with urban flooding in the last few years partly due to climate change but mostly because of poor planning and bad governance. The situation is especially bad in the financial and economic centre, Karachi.