Occupied Balochistan: QUETTA/KARACHI – A woman was killed and more than a dozen others wounded Saturday as over 80 mud houses were damaged in various areas of Balochistan due to heavy rains caused by cyclone Phet which is moving along the coastline.
Heavy rains have also inundated dozens of villages as unprecedented downpours have triggered flash floods in the region. The downpours that started Friday in different coastal areas of Balochistan continued till Saturday evening and had triggered flash floods backed by harsh winds, which inundated a vast area.
The coastal towns of Gwadar, Jiwani, Pasni and Turbat along with surrounding areas are submerged by rainwater.
A woman died and four others wounded when the roofs of their houses collapsed in Malaband and Pushkan while dozens of other houses also collapsed in Turbat, Pasni and nearby villages, which left 12 people injured.
Sources said several boats were submerged after a dam burst in Jiwani while six villages were also inundated, however, no loss of life reported as people were already shifted to the safer places. Boats anchored at Gwadar Port were also hit by the sea waves causing extensive damage.
Official sources said flash flooding had inundated many parts of Coastal Highway, which cut off link with Gwadar, Turbat and Pasni.
Sources say five fishermen onboard were trapped in the sea as their boat was stuck some 10 km from the Jiwani coast.
A fisherman, Muslim Murad, told media on phone that their boat was trapped in the sea and they were waiting for rescue, adding that evacuation through helicopter was not possible because of strong winds.
On the other hand, the Met Office recorded 370mm rain in Gwadar within 12 hours, setting a new record for the town, while Jiwani and Pasni received 208 and 82mm respectively.
And in Quetta, Chief Minister Nawab Muhammad Aslam Khan Raisani has announced immediate release of Rs50 million for the relief and rehabilitation of the affected people.
Cyclone Phet has inundated 40 villages of Gwadar, Minister for Fisheries Balochistan told a private TV channel on Saturday. According to the minister, the affected people have been shifted to the safer places.
Cyclone Phet after causing havoc in Balochistan’s coastal areas is moving towards Sindh coastal belt including Karachi, Thatta and Badin and expected to hit the above-mentioned areas anytime on Sunday (today).
The Met Office officials told TheNation that a moderate cyclone is likely to hit Sindh belt. Heavy rainfall and stormy winds gusting to 120km/hour are expected which would create flood-like situation in Karachi, they added.
The severe cyclone has weakened into a tropical storm and located at 24¦N-61¦E about less than 400km from Karachi till filing of this report on Saturday evening.
The system is likely to weaken further before making landfall between Karachi and Pasni on Sunday (with maximum sustained winds 70-90km/hour gusting to 120km/hour) with associated storm surge of 3-5 metres, Met Office told TheNation.
Met Office also predicted thunderstorm and rains for Islamabad, upper Punjab, upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir, lower Sindh in the next 24 hours.
The National Disaster Management Authority claimed on Saturday that some 7,000 people had been moved to safety from low-lying areas close to the southern City of Karachi.
Meanwhile, administrator Karachi Fazlur Rehman has issued orders for transferring financial and administrative powers to all engineers of Works & Services Department in order to enable them to take timely and immediate actions in any emergency condition during rains in the City, while immediate ban has also been imposed on the transfer and posting of engineers
Heavy rains have also inundated dozens of villages as unprecedented downpours have triggered flash floods in the region. The downpours that started Friday in different coastal areas of Balochistan continued till Saturday evening and had triggered flash floods backed by harsh winds, which inundated a vast area.
The coastal towns of Gwadar, Jiwani, Pasni and Turbat along with surrounding areas are submerged by rainwater.
A woman died and four others wounded when the roofs of their houses collapsed in Malaband and Pushkan while dozens of other houses also collapsed in Turbat, Pasni and nearby villages, which left 12 people injured.
Sources said several boats were submerged after a dam burst in Jiwani while six villages were also inundated, however, no loss of life reported as people were already shifted to the safer places. Boats anchored at Gwadar Port were also hit by the sea waves causing extensive damage.
Official sources said flash flooding had inundated many parts of Coastal Highway, which cut off link with Gwadar, Turbat and Pasni.
Sources say five fishermen onboard were trapped in the sea as their boat was stuck some 10 km from the Jiwani coast.
A fisherman, Muslim Murad, told media on phone that their boat was trapped in the sea and they were waiting for rescue, adding that evacuation through helicopter was not possible because of strong winds.
On the other hand, the Met Office recorded 370mm rain in Gwadar within 12 hours, setting a new record for the town, while Jiwani and Pasni received 208 and 82mm respectively.
And in Quetta, Chief Minister Nawab Muhammad Aslam Khan Raisani has announced immediate release of Rs50 million for the relief and rehabilitation of the affected people.
Cyclone Phet has inundated 40 villages of Gwadar, Minister for Fisheries Balochistan told a private TV channel on Saturday. According to the minister, the affected people have been shifted to the safer places.
Cyclone Phet after causing havoc in Balochistan’s coastal areas is moving towards Sindh coastal belt including Karachi, Thatta and Badin and expected to hit the above-mentioned areas anytime on Sunday (today).
The Met Office officials told TheNation that a moderate cyclone is likely to hit Sindh belt. Heavy rainfall and stormy winds gusting to 120km/hour are expected which would create flood-like situation in Karachi, they added.
The severe cyclone has weakened into a tropical storm and located at 24¦N-61¦E about less than 400km from Karachi till filing of this report on Saturday evening.
The system is likely to weaken further before making landfall between Karachi and Pasni on Sunday (with maximum sustained winds 70-90km/hour gusting to 120km/hour) with associated storm surge of 3-5 metres, Met Office told TheNation.
Met Office also predicted thunderstorm and rains for Islamabad, upper Punjab, upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir, lower Sindh in the next 24 hours.
The National Disaster Management Authority claimed on Saturday that some 7,000 people had been moved to safety from low-lying areas close to the southern City of Karachi.
Meanwhile, administrator Karachi Fazlur Rehman has issued orders for transferring financial and administrative powers to all engineers of Works & Services Department in order to enable them to take timely and immediate actions in any emergency condition during rains in the City, while immediate ban has also been imposed on the transfer and posting of engineers
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