Manchar lake overflows

250 villages evacuated as water levels at lake rise to dangerous levels, with surplus water overflowing in places.


Express September 14, 2010

More than 250 villages have been evacuated as water levels at the Manchar lake have risen to dangerous levels, with surplus water overflowing at zero point.

Fresh floods from the lake may devastate towns and facilities including Sehwan airport and PARCO oil refinery. Officials say towns including Bhon and Jhingira are in danger of getting flooded which puts 250,000 people at risk. Work is underway to construct a spillway at Aral Wah to ease water pressure.

Irrigation department officials have been directed t inspect the water levels while a state of emergency has been declared at the lake. Mass evacuations are underway as flood water from various canals has already inundated dozens of villages.

Meanwhile more than 250 villages in Juhi area are flooded and the land route to Juhi remains suspended.

In Hyderabad, the district administration has forbidden the use of water from Aral Wah canal for drinking purposes while water supply to Sehwan has also been suspended. Water tanker services are operational in the area.

Fresh flood warnings as water level in Sutlej rises

The water level in River Sutlej is on the rise and people in nearby areas have been directed to move to safer locations.

The warning has been issued after India discharged water into River Sutlej as 22,000 cusecs of water is heading to Head Sulemanki from Head Islam.

Earlier, there were warnings that another wave of flooding may hit Pakistan from the eastern side as India may release additional water in Ravi and Sutlej.

A top National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) official had warned that in case of abnormal release of waters from India there are chances of flooding in the low-lying areas of Pakistan. “The Indus water Treaty Clause 84 states that in the event of any flood situation in India, New Delhi is suppose to warn Pakistan within 24 hours and in worse situations at least 6 hours in advance,” the official had revealed.

The NDMA official warned that more rain is expected in Sindh as well. “There is a system of monsoon being developed around 20th of September, but it’s at a preliminary stage and it’s too soon to predict its intensity or predict the area where it will hit.”

Some residents of the most vulnerable areas however have refused to leave their houses and move to the camps. Wahari DCO Muhammad Ashraf says the water level at Head Islam is going to surge in the coming days.

Kotri still in high flood as Thatta residents start returning

Although water level is now receding, a high flood is still passing through the Kotri Barrage.

According to the Irrigation Department, the inflow at Kotri Barrage stands at 337,000  cusecs while water outflow is 320,000 cusecs.

The water level has subsided in Sorjani, Dulha Dariya Khan and Manarki Dyke in district Thatta.

People are now returning home as water ebbs away in Sajawal city. However roads from Sajawal to Badin, Mirpur and Jati are still submerged.

1,800 people died in the floods: NDMA

The National Disasters Management Authority (NDMA) on Tuesday said that 1,800 people died and two million homes were destroyed in this year’s flooding.

The NDMA has been giving breakdown figures of the destruction visited upon Pakistan by the flooding disaster. It said more than a million homes in Sindh alone have been destroyed.

Punjab lost half a million homes while 200,000 were washed away in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. However, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa suffered the most in terms of lives lost – 11,050 people.

COMMENTS (6)

Sultan Ahmed. | 13 years ago | Reply We need pray to God further.
Mehroz Siraj | 13 years ago | Reply Everyone should read this.... :) Any reply or feedback on the blog would be appreciated.... !! :) cheers http://theburningissue.wordpress.com/2010/09/13/pakistan-needs-us/
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