Several areas in Sindh remained inundated with floodwater as authorities continued efforts to safeguard Sehwan’s Bhan Syedabad city and Dadu city from a possible deluge.
Dadu Deputy Commissioner (DC) Syed Murtaza Ali Shah told media that work on Ring bund to protect Dadu city continued on Tuesday morning.
In Sehwan, efforts were under way to save Bhan Syedabad city, said MNA Sikandar Ali Rahoupoto, who had been elected from the area’s NA-233 constituency.
“The situation where Ring bund is located was bad at night due to strong winds and tides, but it is back to normal now,” he said, adding that machinery was being used to complete work on Bhan Syedabad’s Ring bund.
According to Sehwan Assistant Commissioner Iqbal Hussain, 450 villages in seven union councils of the tehsil were flooded by water from Manchhar Lake.
He said relief efforts in the area were ongoing and those affected by floods were being shifted to safe spots. “We have put up over 50 relief camps and tent cities,” he added.
Sindh is where floodwaters from record monsoon rains and glacial melt in the mountainous north and hill torrents from Balochistan have converged and are wreaking havoc after leaving a trail of deaths and destruction elsewhere. Manchhar Lake — the country’s largest freshwater lake — has been the main source of the threat, compelling authorities to breach its protective dykes and other structures along its paths in an attempt to divert the flow of water towards less populated areas and prevent flooding in densely populated regions.
Meanwhile, Irrigation Emergency Cell In Charge Sher Muhammad Mallah said that the water level in Manchhar was recorded at the 122.6-foot reduced level (RL) on Tuesday morning and the water level in the Indus River was at 127.4-foot RL at the Dadu-Moro bridge.
The river’s water level was recorded at 109.5-foot RL at the Amri bridge, he added. Irrigation Engineer Mahesh Kumar said water from Manchhar was being discharged into the Indus at RD-96, RD-99, RD-98, RD-199 and Karampur and the flow of water was recorded at 50,000 cusecs.
The Flood Forecasting Division’s website showed there was a high-level flood in the Indus at Kotri.
In a meeting to get an overview of rescue and relief operations in flood-affected areas today, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah was told that 371,440 patients has been brought to health camps set up across the province.
“Of these, 18,804 reported gastro-related diseases, 20,968 skin related, 8,731 had malaria (suspected), 80 dengue (suspected), and 43,903 complained of other issues,” a press release issued by the CM House said.
So far, 169 patients have died at the camps, it revealed.
Subsequently, the chief minister instructed the health department to ensure the camps were sprayed for mosquitoes and take care of all the people, particularly women, children and elderly, living in the camps.
During the meeting, Shah was also told that the water level at Guddu and Sukkur barrages had returned to normal, while water at the Kotri Barrage — which is in high floods — was slowly reducing.
It was pointed out that four cuts were made at the Larkana-Sehwan Bund because of which water level near Mehar and Khairpur Nathan Shah had been reduced by one foot and three feet respectively.
Furthermore, the CM was told that there was enormous pressure upon the banks of the spinal from RD-816 to RD-159. The catchment area of LBOD received heavy rainfall yesterday, increasing pressure on its embankments.
Farmers in several villages of Sindh have braved the rising waters to stay on and try to keep alive their remaining cattle.
