Punjab, the most populous province in Pakistan, reported at least 63 victims and 290 injuries in the past 24 hours, pushing the toll nationally since the start of seasonal rains on June 26 at more than 120 deaths, according to the National Disaster Management Authority.
The discharge crisis – the rivers increasing, the forecasts of new showers, fragile rural houses which collapse and the transport links have separated – has rekindled striking memories of the catastrophic floods of 2022 which submerged a third of the country and affected more than 33 million people.
More intense precipitation is planned on parts of the center and northern Pakistan over the next 72 hours. The meteorological forecasters warned against the “exceptional” flood levels of up to 450,000 brackets in certain places along the Jhelum river. A CUSEC is equal to a cube foot of water – equivalent to 28.4 liters or 7.5 gallons – per second.
There are also fears against lighting floods of the glacier lake in the regions of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit Baltistan.
Wider contingency – the main gaps in stock
Managed by the office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs (Ochha), the presence of the United Nations in Pakistan has released a Inter-Age Mosson Emergency Plan Earlier this month.
The plan establishes response triggers, sectoral roles and arrangements for floods, storms and landslides – under the direction of the government.
However, pre-to-have aid supplies remain well below the projected needs, with key sectors such as protection, nutrition and shelters and non-food articles, faced with severe gaps.
These deficits highlight the urgency of the pre-positioning elements and obtaining rapid funding if the rains intensify.
Build resilience
In the middle of the emergency, the United Nations World Food Program (Wfp) And the government of Pakistan launched a climate risk project this week in the Biner and Shangla districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
THE initiative will establish early alert systems, train communities in safe evacuation and strengthen local response to disasters.
“” Recurrent climatic shocks are an engine of hunger and malnutrition, threatening lives, livelihoods and whole food systems“Said the Director of the WFP country, Coco Ushiyama.
“This project represents a multilayer investment in systems and early alert action.”
2022 devastation flashbacks
The growing disaster reveals once again Pakistan vulnerability to climatic shocks.
In 2022, Unprecedented monsoon floods killed more than 1,700 people, moved millions and devastated water systems, leaving millions more in desperate needs. The disaster has also imposed immense economic damage estimated at nearly $ 40 billion and inverted years of development efforts.
Experts warn that erratic monsoon models, amplified by climate change, strike the country – and others across South Asia – harder each year.
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
