Dhabeji shutdown set to leave city high, dry

9 of 21 pumps to go offline on Nov 13, cutting daily supply by 130m gallons

KARACHI:

The city's water woes are set to deepen on November 13, with a scheduled power shutdown and subsequent maintenance at the Dhabeji pumping station expected to slash Karachi's daily water supply by around 130 million gallons, leaving residents across several neighbourhoods bracing for shortages.

According to a Water Corporation spokesperson, K-Electric has announced a scheduled power suspension at the Dhabeji grid station from 10am to midnight on November 13 for its annual maintenance. The shutdown will render nine of the pumping station's 21 pumps inoperative, reducing Karachi's daily water supply from approximately 650 million gallons to 520 million gallons.

The disruption is likely to affect residents of Landhi, Korangi, Malir, Shah Faisal, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Clifton, Saddar and Lyari, as well as parts of Jinnah, Chaneser, Nazimabad, Liaquatabad and North Karachi. Water supply to parts of Nazimabad and Gulberg Town will also be partially affected.

The spokesperson said the Landhi and Sherpao hydrants would remain closed during the power shutdown. Following the completion of K-Electric's maintenance work, six of the nine suspended pumps will be restored, bringing water supply back towards normal in most affected areas, except Landhi, Korangi, Malir and Shah Faisal.

However, relief for residents of these four areas will remain limited as the Water Corporation will subsequently undertake its own annual maintenance, lasting another 22 hours. During this period, three pumps at Dhabeji will remain non-operational, resulting in partially disrupted supplies to the four localities.