Officials anticipate super flood in next 72 hours

Army rescues hundreds of residents after the flash floods ravaged villages

SUKKUR:

A very high flood carrying 726,000 cusecs water passed through the Guddu barrage on Saturday. Authorities fear it is likely to turn into a super flood within the next 72 hours, leading to a concern that the province could experience a repeat of the events of the 2010 floods.

According to the forecast of the met office, more heavy rains are expected in the upper catchment areas, especially in the mountainous range of Koh-e-Suleman near Dera Ghazi Khan, within the next two to five days. This could further aggravate the situation.

Read: 109 killed in flash floods across Pakistan: NDMA

Sukkur barrage control room incharge Abdul Aziz Soomro said that the downstream flow at Taunsa barrage was 531,000 cusecs on Saturday, while at Panjnad, it was 132,000 cusecs. This means that a total of 663,000 cusecs water was heading towards River Indus. With 50,000 cusecs water already gushing down from Koh-e-Suleman, a total of 713,000 cusecs is making its way towards Indus. He further said the water gushing down from Koh-e-Suleman is unmeasured and, in case of more heavy rains as forecasted by the met office, the situation might turn ugly. It is expected that a flood carrying around 800,000 cusecs of water might pass through Guddu barrage within the next 24 hours, he said.

Former irrigation secretary and water expert Idrees Rajput also told The Express Tribune that Guddu barrage might receive 800,000 cusecs of water within the next 24 hours. He said that hill torrents coming down from Koh-e-Suleman are playing a vital role in increasing the volume of water in Indus.

Read: Flood alert: Medium flood to pass through Sindh barrages in three days

Speaking about the structures of Guddu and Sukkur barrages, he said that both of them have experienced more than 1,200,000 cusecs passing through during the super flood of 2010 and, therefore, this flood carrying 800,000 cusecs of water will also pass through without causing any damage.

Springing into action

Meanwhile, rescue and relief teams of the Pakistan Army, along with necessary equipment remained busy in Sukkur, Ghotki, Khairpur, Shikarpur, Larkana and other districts of upper Sindh. Pano Akil cantonment public relations officer Major Aleem told The Express Tribune that teams of the army rescued hundreds of katcha residents from different areas including Qadirpur loop bund, Shank bund, Katcho Bhindi I and II in Ghotki district, Ulra Jagir bund in Khairpur district, and Bulherji bund. He added that more teams have been dispatched to these areas to cope with any possible emergency.

Similarly, Pakistan Navy rescue teams rescued more than 2,275 people. According to a press statement issued on Saturday, the emergency response teams of Pakistan Navy and Pakistan Maritime Security Agency carried out evacuation in different districts during the last 24 hours.

Bunds intensified

Larkana commissioner Ghulam Akbar Laghari told The Express Tribune that with the rise in water level, pressure has been intensified at protective bunds especially at 0 and 0.7 of Akil Agani bund and Bulherji bund.

According to Laghari, residents of the katcha areas were not expecting the rise in water level but as it rose, they started contacting the district administration, requesting for rescue. "We are responding to their calls with the help of Pakistan Army and Pakistan Navy," he said.

*With additional input from Pakistan Navy's press statement

Published in The Express Tribune, August 2^nd, 2015.