KARACHI - Torrential monsoon rain in the provincial capital that had started on Friday has so far claimed at least 52 lives, as heavy downpour flooded low-lying parts of the City damaging hundreds of homes and civic infrastructure.
The rainstorm has broken the 30-year record with some areas receiving more than 215 mm of rain. KESC, responsible for supplying electricity to the City and the adjoining region, has remained unable to restoring power supply with many grid stations damaged and transmission lines downed. It is worth mentioning that all most the entire population was without electricity on Sunday night. But the company is saying that it is making all out efforts to ensure power supply to the City.
Talking to The Nation City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal said authorities were trying their best to cope up with the situation and claimed that most localities in the City had been cleaned.
He said arrangements had been made to counter expected happenings after the Met Office forecasted heavy showers. But the rain was heaviest in the last 30 years, straining the available infrastructure and resources, he added.
Efforts were underway to restore traffic and electricity along with pumping the floodwater out of streets and homes, he said.
When contacted, DCO Karachi Javaid M Hanif feared that the death toll in rain related incidents might rise further, as the officials had evacuated the people from the badly affected neighbourhoods.
The district government is claiming that it has prepared a new plan keeping in view heavy rains and issued orders deploying workers on relief activities but no relief work is visible till filing of this report.
Meanwhile, Health Minster Dr Saghir Ahmed has confirmed only 25 deaths, besides 57 injured persons. He said 4 dead bodies were brought to the Qatar Hospital from Orangi Town and its adjacent areas while 9 bodies had been rushed to Civil Hospital Karachi, one to JPMC and 4 bodies were shifted to the Murshad Hospital from Baldia Town.
According to details, in a tragic incident at Ranchor Line, 4 family members were killed when the roof of an adjacent house caved into the house of Badar (45) killing him along with his wife Rani (38) and their children including Athar (5) and Zardaza (7). Similarly, Bushra (27) and her three-year-old son Nasir died as the roof of their house collapsed in Manghopir. In another major incident in Gadap Town, some 11 residents of Lasi Goth drowned in gushing water at Lyari river-bed. Five of them including Nadeem Umar 27, Nadia 17, Rozina 20, Umer Nabi 50 and Javed 28 died while rest of them were rescued.