ISLAMABAD: Authorities in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province were placed on high alert on Tuesday ahead of a forecast of rain and strong winds, as the weather department predicted thunderstorms across large parts of the country from today, warning of flash floods and landslides in vulnerable parts of the country.
The alert comes after unseasonal storms in Karachi earlier this month killed more than a dozen people and caused widespread disruption, underscoring the risks posed by increasingly erratic weather patterns.
“Authorities have been instructed to ensure the availability and functionality of all necessary machinery for drainage,” Sindh Chief Secretary Asif Hyder Shah said, according to an official statement.
“Immediate action has been ordered against hazardous billboards in view of rain and strong winds,” he added, directing commissioners and field teams to remain on alert.
Earlier in the week, the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said in a statement that a system of rain, wind and thunderstorms was expected across much of the country from the evening of March 24 through March 30.
“Rain-wind/thunderstorm (with isolated hailstorm) predicted in the country from 24th (evening/night) to 30th March with occasional gaps,” the PMD said.
“Landslides may occur in vulnerable areas of upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir during the period,” it added. “Due to heavy rains, a flash flood is expected in Balochistan from 25th to 28th March, while in local streams and nullahs of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from 28th to 30th March.”
The PMD said the system would first affect parts of southwestern Balochistan before spreading to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir and Sindh.
Home to more than 240 million people, Pakistan is among the countries most vulnerable to climate change and has experienced increasingly erratic weather patterns in recent years.
At least 1,037 people died during last year’s monsoon season, according to the National Disaster Management Authority, with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa reporting the highest toll.
