Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - On Friday, the Pakistani military said that they had saved another 2,000 people who were trapped by risin...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - On Friday, the Pakistani military said that they had saved another 2,000 people who were trapped by rising floodwaters. This is part of a disaster that is being blamed on climate change and has already flooded about a third of the South Asian country and is still getting worse.
Floods have killed at least 1,208 people, including 416 children, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said. The floods were caused by record monsoon rains and melting glaciers in the northern mountains.
The UN has asked for $160 million in aid to help deal with what it called a "unprecedented climate catastrophe." At the same time, Pakistan's navy has spread out inland to help in areas that look like seas.
Bashir Khan, a local who stays in touch with people still in the area, said that 11 feet (3.35 m) of water covered several villages in the Dadu district of Sindh, one of the worst-affected provinces.
"My house is under water, and my family and I left it four days ago," he told Reuters.
He said that people in the nearby town of Mehar were building a dike to keep floodwaters from getting into the town.
In a statement, the navy said that on Thursday, it took more than 150 people from villages in Dadu and flew them to safety.
Since rescue efforts began, the military said on Friday that it had taken about 50,000 people to safety, including 1,000 by air.
"In the last 24 hours, 1,991 people who were stranded have been evacuated," the armed forces said in a statement. They also said that nearly 163 tonnes of aid had been sent to the flood victims.
Pakistan's foreign office said that on Friday, several flights with humanitarian aid from places like Qatar and the United Arab Emirates will arrive.
In September, weather experts say there will be more rain and flash floods, and parts of the south should get ready for a surge of water from the Indus river.
Sindh has asked relief camps to send more female doctors and medical officers to help care for pregnant women and young mothers who are being forced to leave their homes because of the floods.
In the quarter from June to August, Pakistan got a total of 390.7mm of rain, which is almost 200% more than its 30-year average (15.38 inches).
