Pakistan flood toll rises to 1,290, more rainfall predicted in next 3-4 days

The toll from flash floods in Pakistan increased to 1,290 after 26 more people died in the last 24 hours, Dawn reported on Sunday, citing the country’s National Disaster Management Authority.

Flash floods and landslides along the Indus and Kabul rivers have displaced nearly 3.3 crore people in Pakistan, which has a population of 23 crore.

The country has received 190% more rain than its 30-year average between June and August. The Sindh province in southeast Pakistan, which grows around 25% of the country’s total agricultural produce, is the worst hit after getting 466% more rain than the 30-year average.

The National Disaster Management Authority said that a total of 80 districts have been declared calamity-hit in the country. These include 31 in Balochistan, 23 in Sindh, 17 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, six in Gilgit-Baltistan and three in Punjab.

Pakistan’s meteorological agency has predicted more rains and flash flooding in the next three to four days, according to Dawn. Though, it added that Sindh, Balochistan and south Punjab may experience hot and humid weather during these days.

On Sunday, officials in the Sindh province warned of more flooding after Lake Manchar – the largest natural freshwater lake in Pakistan – swelled up due to unprecedented rainfall, the Associated Press reported.

Fariduddin Mustafa, the administrator for the Jamshoro district, said that officials made a cut into the lake’s embankment to allow excess water to escape and flow into the Indus but the water was still rising.

“After we assessed water levels had reached a dangerous level…and there was fear that the embankment of the lake might be caved in at any time, the administration decided to make a cut on the Bagh-e-Yousuf side to avert any uncontrollable flow of water,” Mustafa said, according to AP.

Sindh’s Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon said that the cut was made to save several towns in Sehwan and Bhan Saeedabad districts.

“It was a difficult decision [but] it had to be taken,” he said, according to Dawn. “Approximately 1,25,000 people in five union councils would be affected by the water released through this cut.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited Balochistan to assess the damage caused by floods, the newspaper reported. He said the entire nation was working in unison to overcome the crisis.

Last week, the country announced a national emergency in the wake of the devastating flood situation. Estimates suggest the floods have caused damage worth $10 billion (Rs 79,000 crore) and many people face serious food shortages, Pakistan’s Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal told Reuters.

The United Nations International Children’s Education Funds warned on Wednesday that more than three million children in Pakistan need humanitarian assistance. The international body also said that children are at an increased risk of waterborne diseases, drowning and malnutrition due to the severe flooding.