KARACHI: Pakistan's Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman said on Tuesday the country's financial hub of Karachi was likely to face urban flooding as a powerful cyclone nears landfall on June 15, with the country's disaster management authorities planning to evacuate up to 100,000 people from coastal areas in the south.
The statement came as the powerful storm, Biparjoy, moved further north-northwestward in the last 12 hours and was now at a distance of about 410km from Karachi. It is expected to make a landfall on Thursday, crossing between Keti Bandar in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province and the Indian state of Gujarat.
The government in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province has kicked off an evacuation drive in coastal villages and islands, while Rehman's warning raised concerns about the safety of Pakistan’s financial capital, where torrential rains caused widespread flooding and damages last year when historic monsoon rains affected more than 30 million people across the country.
“Karachi will likely face urban flooding given the scale & intensity of winds. Precautionary evacuations in Seaview areas have begun,” Rehman wrote on Twitter, warning people to take the government's advisories seriously.
“So far, it has reduced intensity only for the Balochistan side am told but it is highly unpredictable so please do NOT take it casually. It is varying in intensity but caution is crucial, esp near the Sindh coast.”
Meanwhile, Lt Gen Inam Haider Malik, the chief of Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), said that up to 100,000 citizens needed to be evacuated to safer locations by Wednesday.
“According to the data we have shared with the military formations [performing rescue operations in vulnerable areas], there are close to 100,000 people who have to be evacuated from there,” Malik said at a press conference alongside the climate change minister.
“This process will be rapidly completed either tomorrow evening or early morning on Thursday.”
Rehman said the government was taking all measures to keep the citizens safe.
“The government has started taking all the measures to keep the citizens safe by evacuating them, especially those living in the coastal areas of Keti Bandar, Thatta, and Badin where heavy rains are expected between June 14 and June 16,” she said. “We had to forcefully evacuate some people because citizens’ safety is our priority.”
Speaking to reporters in Karachi, the Sindh government’s spokesperson, Murtaza Wahad, admitted that people in Karachi, which was at risk of urban flooding, were resisting orders from the authorities.
“The cyclone is just 410 kilometers away from Karachi. It’s not fun,” he said. "People should not go towards the beach. We are facing difficulty in removing billboards, but we are doing it."
Asad Raza, a senior superintendent of police in Karachi's South district, said law enforcement was pondering forced evacuations in case people chose to stay despite warnings.
Farooq Soomro, deputy commissioner of Sindh's Thatta district, said an evacuation operation along the coast was expected by Tuesday evening.
“Pakistan army, Rangers, police and district administration are busy moving people to safer locations from coastal villages and creeks in Thatta district,” Soomro said.
On Tuesday, the Met Office said Cyclone Biparjoy had moved further north-northwestward since morning and was now at a distance of about 410km south of Karachi and 400km south of Thatta.
“Under the existing upper-level steering winds, the VSCS ‘BIPARJOY’ is most likely to track further Northward until 14 June morning, then recurve Northeastward and cross between Keti Bandar (Southeast Sindh) and Indian Gujarat coast on 15 June afternoon/evening as a Very Severe Cyclonic Storm (VSCS) with packing winds of 100-120 Km/hour gusting 140 km/hour,” the Met Office said.
Possible impacts included the cyclone’s probable approach to the southeast Sindh coast, widespread wind, dust and thunderstorms, and heavy rain accompanied by “squally winds of 80-100Km/hour gusting 120km/hour likely in Thatta, Sujawal, Badin, Tharparker, Mirpurkhas & Umerkot districts during 13-17 June,” according to the Met Office.
Storms and rain are also expected in Karachi, Hyderabad, Tando Muhammad Khan, Tando Allayar, Shaheed Benazirabad, and Sanghar districts on June 14-16.
“Squally (high intensity) winds may cause damage to loose & vulnerable structures (Kutcha houses) including solar panels etc,” the Met Office further said. “Storm surge of 3-3.5 meters (8-12 feet) expected at the land falling point (Keti Bandar and around) which can inundate the low-lying settlements.”
It warned fishermen not to venture in the open sea till the weather system subsides by June 17.
