Heatwave

Sindh govt and NGOs have set up special centres in hospitals and other locations for treatment of heatstroke cases

Heat and dust mark summer months in the subcontinent. Heatwave is not an uncommon phenomenon in May and June in Sindh and other parts of Pakistan. At this time of the year in the plains, the earth is scorched. However, what unsettles people are the memories of the severe heatwave of 2015 and the horror it caused. That heatwave had killed 2,000 people in the Sindh province, mostly in its capital Karachi, when temperatures had soared to 49 degrees Celsius and even beyond. A heatwave has once again struck Sindh, including its capital Karachi, as on April 30 the mercury shot up to 42 degrees Celsius. The Met office had forecast a three-day heatwave from May 1 to 3. Now it is expected to continue till May 4. According to the Met office forecast, temperature in Karachi is likely to be between 40 and 42 degrees Celsius during the heatwave. The Sindh government and NGOs have set up special centres in hospitals and other locations for treatment of heatstroke cases in various places of the province, including Karachi. The government has asked people to take special precautions against heatwave and how to deal with cases of heat and sun stroke. Hospitals have been put on alert to deal with the situation arising out of the increasing temperature. People have been asked to eat lightly and consume only light food and drink lots of water and other liquid stuff as heat causes dehydration and also affects the digestive system. Big eaters should resist the temptation to go on gorging on junk and greasy food to avoid diseases related to indigestion. It is the time of the year to avoid bursting with indigestion even if one is bursting with money.

The experience of 2015 shows that the most vulnerable people were labourers who worked in the sun during the day and they did not have drinking water available at hand. This should not happen again. 

Published in The Express Tribune, May 1^st, 2019.

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