In 2015, over 1,000 deaths were reported from the metropolitan city alone due to the same sweltering heat
KARACHI: Extreme heat measured at 44 degrees Celsius combined with severe water shortages and prolonged and frequent power outages have been wreaking havoc on the citizens in Karachi since the past weekend. For the past few years, heat has become unbearable in the city. In 2015, over 1,000 deaths were reported from the metropolitan city alone due to the same sweltering heat. According to the focal person of the assistant commissioner Karachi, the city authority has developed a plan to deal with an emergency situation in the wake of a heatwave, which includes setting up cooling stations in various areas across the city. However, during the past three days no such stations were witnessed anywhere in Karachi.
Moreover, the government has kept mum over the issue of power outages and limited water supply in the city. The situation has gotten to the point where despite paying hefty amounts in power and water utility bills, the supply for either is insufficient.
Maheen Ijaz
Published in The Express Tribune, May 22nd, 2018.
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