KARACHI: Sewage from clogged pipes overflowed into homes and hospitals in the port city, causing havoc in some areas of the city due to heavy rain, thunder, and lighting on Saturday night.
Baldi Town, Orangi Town, North Karachi, Surjani Town, Gulshan-e-Maymar, Orangi Town, Bahria Town, Saddar, North Nazimabad, Tower, Liaquatabad, and Nazimabad were among the areas that saw downpours.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) had predicted heavy rain a day earlier, but the city government had not made any action to deal with the downpour, leaving commuters stuck in their cars as major arteries in the megacity were flooded with rainwater when it rained.
The accumulation of water combined with sewage that overflowed from clogged pipes on most of the roads, notably MA Jinnah Road and I.I. Chundrigar Road, caused problems for commuters.
A breakdown in the electricity supply caused various parts of the port city, notably North Nazimabad and its surrounding districts, to go dark with the first raindrop.
Following the intense rain, Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab issued a warning to the city’s residents not to leave their homes unless absolutely required to maintain the status of the city.
According to him, a few of the water pumping stations are no longer operational. On the other hand, he asserted that the rainwater nullahs are overflowing.
Wahab also made inspections of the situation by visiting various parts of the city.
In addition to low-lying regions, rainwater infiltrated homes in Defence View, an affluent neighborhood of the city, ruining residents’ furniture and other valuables.
The Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) gynaecology unit’s operating theatre and Civil Hospital ward number 3 were infiltrated by rainfall combined with sewage, despite the PMD’s prediction. The interim Sindh government did little to address the situation.
Additionally, stagnant water is visible near the Governor House and the Sindh Assembly.
According to weather department records, Baldia Town recorded the most rainfall at 64 mm, followed by Surjani Town with 62 mm.
52.2 mm were received by Orangi Town, 41.8 mm by Karachi Airport, 23.5 mm by Nazimabad, 29.8 mm by University Road, 33.6 mm by North Nazimabad, and 23 mm by Gulshan-e-Maymar.
