KARACHI:
The people of Sindh had to face the onslaught of mother nature once again as a heavy dust storm struck late Saturday evening.
In Karachi, a woman and a teenage boy were electrocuted after a electricity pole fell in Gulshan-e-Hadeed and Kharadar. A dozen people were also wounded in Saddar, Gulberg and North Nazimabad.
In Hyderabad, 35-year-old Majeedan Malik was killed and her three children were injured when the roof of their house collapsed in Sanjhoro area of Sanghar district.
The winds reached the speed of up to 50 knots (92 kph) with visibility as low as 50 kilometres in Karachi while its speed was recorded at 10 knots in Hyderabad.
The heavy winds originated from Balochistan and also hit Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas, Sanghar, Bhitshah, Shaheed Benazirabad and Tando Mohammad Khan districts as rain and thunder were reported.
The storm is not part of any greater weather system ,according to the metrological office and rise and drop in the temperature is part of the local weather patterns. However, the wind gusts are stronger than the ones which came in March.
Even if the dust storm calms down and the winds stop blowing within two hours it can still take over 12 hours for the dust to dissipate. It can cause irritability in the eyes and breathing problems, especially to those with existing allergies, but the biggest danger is from flying debris.
Rural Sindh glad that it will have electricity for six hours
In Sukkur,the power supply to more than 100 cities, towns and villages of Sindh and Balochistan was restored on Saturday, after a dust storm had damaged five 132 kilovolt electricity towers between Guddu and Tangwani on Thursday.
Jacobabad, Thull, Mirpur Buriro, Bahoo Khoso, Mubarakpur, Manjhipur, Jungal and others in Sindh, while Jafferabad, Suhbatpur, Panhwar Sanhri, Belput and others in Baluchistan suffered additional power outages in the wake of the dust storm.
However, residents of Sukkur are often spared from the agony when Federal Religious Affairs Minister Khursheed Ahmed Shah is in town. Naudero reportedly receives uninterrupted power supply as the city houses the Presidential Camp Office.
Khairpur, hometown of Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah, witnesses nearly twelve hours of power outages every day. B
Published in The Express Tribune, May 20th, 2012.
COMMENTS (4)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
awesome im so exicted... want some cool air in this killing heat !! <3
@Parvez: Also the wind speed at hyderabad must be more than 10 knots to be a dust storm.
Thanks for reporting the wind speed :)
ED correction needed. ...visibility as low as 50 kilometers in Karachi should most likely be 50 meters or less because visibility of 50 kilometers even on a beautiful day is impossible.