Downpour deaths pile on

Four more drowning incidents reported, one electrocuted to death

Rain-related mishaps continued to pile misery on the residents of Sindh on Wednesday, as the province struggled to come to terms with the aftermath of the previous day's deluge.

By Wednesday, at least four more incidents of drowning and one of death due to electrocution were reported in Karachi and Hyderabad.

Of those, one took place near Site B Police Station in Karachi, where an 11-year-old boy, identified as Sattar, drowned in a nullah. The body was shifted to a nearby hospital, where doctors confirmed Sattar's death, and later handed over to the heirs.

Meanwhile, four men, on motorcycles, were swept away by strong current in Korangi nullah. While two among them went missing, the other two managed to hold on to an electricity pole to prevent themselves from being washed away with rapidly flowing water. One of them, Zubair, called a relative of his on Tuesday night and asked him to get help for rescuing them. Zubair's relative told the media that they were in finding it hard to sustain their hold on the pole in chest-deep water. He further said that Zubair told him he had witnessed two other men, on a motorcycle, being swept away by the current.

Separately, three girls drowned in a nullah in Samoon Goth, it was reported late Tuesday night. Among them, the body of five-year-old Samra has been recovered and the search for the other two is underway. When contacted to inquire about the incident, police and rescue workers, however, expressed ignorance.

Besides, a teenage boy was electrocuted to death in Gulbahar Colony late Tuesday night. The deceased was identified as Sajjad, 18. The body was shifted to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital.

Moreover, a man drowned in Hyderabad's Railway Colony on Wednesday. The deceased was identified as Waseem, 40. The body was handed over to the heirs after the completion of medico-legal formalities.

Later, the bereaved family carried the body to Makki Shah Police Station and staged a demonstration outside it against the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA). They criticised the body over its failure to drain rainwater and said they would register a case against it.

WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM PPI

Published in The Express Tribune, August 27^th, 2020.