Sigh of relief as cyclone steers away from Sindh coast
The provincial metropolis on Saturday experienced intermittent rains under the impact of a rare August cyclone which moved further westward from the Sindh coast.
According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), Cyclone Asna steered away from Pakistan's coastline - lying about 370 kilometres from Karachi - but residents of Balochistan's coastal belt still braced for expected rains brought by the weather system.
"The system is likely to track further west-south-westwards," the Met Office added.
It said rain/thundershowers with a few heavy falls, accompanied by squally winds of 60-70km/hour were likely in Lasbella, Awaran, Ormara, Pasni, Gwadar, Jiwani, Turbat, Panjgur and surroundings till Sunday night.
The PMD said heavy rains may create water logging in low-lying areas of Makran coast and sea conditions were likely to remain rough/very rough till Sunday.
It advised fishermen of Balochistan not to venture into the open sea till Sunday night while those of Sindh could resume their activities from tomorrow.
According to rainfall figures as of 3pm, it rained 39 millimetres in Karachi's Quaidabad, 24mm in Surjani, 18.4mm in Korangi, 17mm in North Nazimabad, 16.5mm in North Karachi, 16mm each at University Road and Jinnah Terminal, 15mm at PAF Faisal Base, 13mm at PAF Masroor Base, 12.4mm in Old Area Airport, 11.8mm each in Keamari and Gulshan-i-Maymar, 5mm in Gulshan-i-Hadeed, 4.2mm in Gadap and 1mm in Saddar.
A Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Karachi was diverted to Muscat due to severe weather conditions that prevented it from landing at Karachi Airport multiple times during the stormy late-night and early morning hours.
On Saturday morning, the foreign airline's flight was redirected to Muscat after repeated failed attempts to land in Karachi due to the adverse weather.
Qatar Airways flight QR-610 was forced to land in Muscat after several unsuccessful landing attempts at Karachi Airport. The flight carried 250 passengers.
Once the weather in Karachi improved later in the afternoon, the flight was called back from Muscat.
Qatar Airways flight QR-610 typically arrives in Karachi from Doha daily at 7:00 am.
In a related development, another Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Angeles City, Philippines, made an emergency landing at Karachi Airport due to an engine failure.
According to the sources, the Doha to Angeles City flight QR926 was forced to make an emergency landing at Karachi Airport on Saturday morning after one of its engines shut down while flying over Pakistani airspace.
The incident occurred at an altitude of 39,000 feet when the Dreamliner aircraft encountered a significant technical issue.
The pilot issued a mayday call and requested immediate permission to land at Karachi Airport. Upon receiving clearance, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner safely landed at the airport.
The 187 passengers on board were escorted to the Karachi Airport lounge while the aircraft was inspected.
Later in the afternoon, a replacement aircraft arrived at Karachi Airport to transport the passengers to their destination in the Philippines.
Qatar Airways also dispatched engineers on the replacement flight to carry out repairs on the malfunctioning aircraft.
Subsequently, the passengers waiting in the Karachi Airport lounge were flown to Angeles City on an alternate plane.
Met officials have described the formation of a cyclone in the monsoon season as a "rare phenomenon".
"It would be a rare event as cyclones are uncommon in the monsoon season," Chief Meteorologist Dr Sardar Sarfaraz said earlier.
He said the cyclone would be the first in the Arabian Sea in August since 1976 and would get the name 'Asna' suggested by Pakistan. He added that regional cyclones were assigned names according to a list prepared by a 13-country panel, including Pakistan.
Due to the forecast of heavy showers and urban flooding warnings, schools in Karachi and Hyderabad were shut on Friday.
A ban on "fishermen venturing into the sea, as well as on swimming, bathing, diving, and wading in the sea/beaches and coastal areas" of Karachi Division had been imposed from Aug 29 till Aug 31 (Saturday).
About two dozen people were killed on Friday across the country as heavy monsoon rains caused widespread devastation.
In Sindh, at least nine people lost their lives in rain-related incidents in Jamshoro, Dadu and Mirpurkhas districts on Friday. More than 30 people were injured as the deluge ruptured sewers, breached dykes and swept away countless mud houses.
In Balochistan, two persons were missing after 13 people were swept away in flash floods in Loralai, Qila Saifullah, Duki, Harnai and Jhal Magsi areas.
In the north, 13 of a family died when the roof of their home collapsed due to a landslide induced by incessant rainfall in Upper Dir.
Meanwhile, flooding in Sindh's Gaj River submerged roads and pathways in over 200 villages throughout the Kachho belt, including Wahi Pandhi and Gorakh Hill Station, officials said on Saturday.
The floodwater also submerged villages such as Jam Babbar, Sher Muhammad Talpur, Muhammad Bakhsh Lund and Tamo Chandio, resulting in the collapse of 30 mud houses.
The situation was further compounded by flooding at four points along the Nai Gaj River which severed all ground connections between Wahi Pandhi, Gorakh Hill Station and the rest of the Kachho area from Dadu Johi.