Flood warning: ‘The danger is over,’ claims relief secretary Shaikh
Around 0.8 million ‘katcha’ residents still threatened by the flood.
KARACHI:
The Sindh government, while issuing orders to evacuate 0.8 million ‘katcha’ (riverbed) residents from the Guddu and Sukkur barrage areas, was still quick to reassure the public that the situation was not as dangerous as was being speculated.
While addressing a joint press conference at the Sindh Secretariat committee room, relief and rehabilitation secretary Roshan Shaikh ruled out the possibility of a ‘super-flood’ in the province, saying that hardly 600,000 to 700,000 cusecs of water would reach Guddu barrage by September 14 and 15.
“We have made all arrangements by alerting irrigation, health and local government officials and cancelling their leaves,” he said, adding that makeshift camps have been set up and that officials were patrolling around the clock on the embankments and 47 vulnerable points along the riverbanks.
“Only the ‘katcha’ residents, living along the riverbeds, are under threat from the torrents,” he said. “Otherwise, the waters will easily flow into the Arabian sea without causing any damage.”
Referring to earlier predictions of a volume of 900,000 cusecs at Guddu barrage, Shaikh said that the flow would be reduced due to a possible breach before Chenab river’s Trimmu barrage in Jhang district in Punjab. “Trimmu barrage only has a maximum flow of 700,000 cusecs, therefore the Punjab government has decided to cut the embankment before it,” he revealed, adding that Guddu barrage had a capacity of 1,300,000 cusecs. “This means that the danger is over and people should no longer be afraid of the situation.”
Shaikh estimated that there were around 2.6 million people living in ‘katcha’ areas in Sindh, but only those living between Guddu and Sukkur were likely to be affected by the flood.
Provincial Disaster Management Authority director-general Salman Shah said that an evacuation warning has also been issued for the ‘katcha’ area in Larkana district and that a fund of Rs20 million has been released to each deputy commissioner to deal with the situation. He added that mobile teams have been formed and anti-snake venom vaccine has been arranged in these areas. “We have also set up district-level control rooms, and the army and navy will be on standby,” said Shah.
Chief meteorologist Tauseef Ahmed said that the rains in Sindh would be much lighter than those which have been lashing Punjab. “Sindh may witness 75 per cent less rains than Punjab,” he said, adding that scattered rains could fall in some areas of the province from September 12 to 16.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 10th, 2014.
The Sindh government, while issuing orders to evacuate 0.8 million ‘katcha’ (riverbed) residents from the Guddu and Sukkur barrage areas, was still quick to reassure the public that the situation was not as dangerous as was being speculated.
While addressing a joint press conference at the Sindh Secretariat committee room, relief and rehabilitation secretary Roshan Shaikh ruled out the possibility of a ‘super-flood’ in the province, saying that hardly 600,000 to 700,000 cusecs of water would reach Guddu barrage by September 14 and 15.
“We have made all arrangements by alerting irrigation, health and local government officials and cancelling their leaves,” he said, adding that makeshift camps have been set up and that officials were patrolling around the clock on the embankments and 47 vulnerable points along the riverbanks.
“Only the ‘katcha’ residents, living along the riverbeds, are under threat from the torrents,” he said. “Otherwise, the waters will easily flow into the Arabian sea without causing any damage.”
Referring to earlier predictions of a volume of 900,000 cusecs at Guddu barrage, Shaikh said that the flow would be reduced due to a possible breach before Chenab river’s Trimmu barrage in Jhang district in Punjab. “Trimmu barrage only has a maximum flow of 700,000 cusecs, therefore the Punjab government has decided to cut the embankment before it,” he revealed, adding that Guddu barrage had a capacity of 1,300,000 cusecs. “This means that the danger is over and people should no longer be afraid of the situation.”
Shaikh estimated that there were around 2.6 million people living in ‘katcha’ areas in Sindh, but only those living between Guddu and Sukkur were likely to be affected by the flood.
Provincial Disaster Management Authority director-general Salman Shah said that an evacuation warning has also been issued for the ‘katcha’ area in Larkana district and that a fund of Rs20 million has been released to each deputy commissioner to deal with the situation. He added that mobile teams have been formed and anti-snake venom vaccine has been arranged in these areas. “We have also set up district-level control rooms, and the army and navy will be on standby,” said Shah.
Chief meteorologist Tauseef Ahmed said that the rains in Sindh would be much lighter than those which have been lashing Punjab. “Sindh may witness 75 per cent less rains than Punjab,” he said, adding that scattered rains could fall in some areas of the province from September 12 to 16.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 10th, 2014.