Natural disasters: K-P a sitting duck in absence of early warning systems

Province still waiting for radar system promised two years ago.

PESHAWAR:

Without an early warning system (EWS) in place, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) remains helpless in the face of natural disasters caused by floods.

The federal government was meant to establish EWS through the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) in various regions of K-P as a safeguard against future flood-related damages. However, The Express Tribune learnt on Thursday, the matter remains at a standstill.

“No lesson has been learnt from the 2010 floods; as recently as August 2013 mid-level floods hit Peshawar’s northern areas and caught people completely by surprise, forcing them to vacate homes at the very last minute,” an official at the Civil Secretariat, Peshawar shared. Implementation of such systems has been pending for long, said the official.

Tied up in a red bow

At a meeting at the Civil Secretariat, Peshawar three months ago, the K-P government pressured the centre to arrange for a modern early warning system for floods at strategic locations. It argued this would better prepare local authorities to respond to any flood-like situation before it spirals out of control.

However, its demand is yet to be met, despite assurances by Federal Minister for Defence Production Rana Tanveer that “strong recommendations” would be made. Tanveer attended the meeting on the directives of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, shared a Provincial Disaster Management (PDMA) official.

Waiting for a wash out

For the last two years, K-P has been waiting to receive a Doppler radar system (DRS); it was approved by the previous federal government for installation in Chitral, the northern most district, and Cherat, in central K-P in Nowshera. However, despite approvals, there has been no movement to implement this. The PDMA official added the radar system which does exist in DI Khan is obsolete. “No money has been allocated in the PSDP by the federal government this time round for the installation of the DRS in K-P,” the official intimated, adding such radars would cost around Rs500 million.

Remaining old school

According to the PDMA official, in the absence of the DRS, the irrigation department is left with no means but to monitor flood water levels manually. They are only able to give warnings once flood waters cross the points and standards used to measure water levels in rivers and streams.

When they do learn about the impending disaster, announcements are made from mosques in a bid to get locals to make a run for it.

The Express Tribune also learnt the provincial meteorological department has sent a summary to the federal meteorological head office, but no step has been taken yet.

The PDMA is also not permitted to raise funds for these warning systems, claimed an official from the department, even though USAID and UNDP have expressed an interest in setting them up in K-P.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 8^th,2013.