Zubair Qureshi
Federal Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman has urged the national and provincial disaster management authorities and relevant local authorities to take all-out precautionary measures to cope with possible disastrous impacts of the above normal monsoon rains in most parts of the country and above average maximum as well as minimum seasonal temperatures over northern parts this year.,
Sherry Rehman in a statement warned that in times of natural disasters, floods and lashing rains in summer monsoon times pose serious danger to the lives and livelihoods of the people as well as public infrastructures.
According to the annual 22nd South Asian Seasonal Climate Outlook Forum’s consensus assessment report, the minister Rehman said most of the country was likely to receive normal to above normal rains during the upcoming four-month summer monsoon (June-Sept) season, the statement further said..
The assessment report shows that during th e summer wet season there is possibility of the excess monsoon rainfalls over south/southwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), north & northeast Balochistan & adjoining southwest Punjab, which might pose risk of flash flooding along the Koh-e-Sulaiman parts. Relatively lesser rains over southeast Sindh might result in drought-like situation in Tharparker & Umerkot districts, according to the forest assessment.
The report has forecast that the above average maximum as well as minimum seasonal temperatures during the monsoon season over extreme north, Gilgit-Baltistan, northwest Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa might result in enhanced snowmelt and consequent flash flooding/GLOF events in the region.
The climate change minister said the fast snowmelt in northern parts could lead to a heavy floods situation resulting in loss of lives and livelihoods in the remote vulnerable mountain regions due to possible flash floods.
However, timely measures for evacuation of the communities in vulnerable localities must be taken by the local disaster management authorities to avert the possible losses, said Sherry Rehman.
