Water level at Kotri Barrage crosses 900,000 cusecs

Several villages in Hyderabad are inundated as Kotri Barrage braces for the worst flood in 50 years. The super flood passing through Kotri will take at least six days to subside.

The provincial government is monitoring the situation at dykes as the water pressure builds up. More than 900,000 cusecs of water is likely to pass through the barrage.

Irrigation experts said that the current flood torrent has broken the record of the 1976 floods.

Meanwhile flood water has entered parts of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) building in Hyderabad. Water has already caused devastation in Ghauspur, Thul, Jacobabad, Garhi Khairu and other adjoining areas.

Water pressure at Right Bank Outfall Drain (RBOD) III has been reduced by making breaches at three points and efforts are underway to keep the safety dyke in ShahdadKot intact.

Flood torrents from Garhi Khairu and Balochistan have reached Hamal Lake. For the past ten days, transport of food items between Sindh and Balochistan are at a halt due to suspension of the road link between the two provinces.

Floods have affected 4.5m people: UN

Devastating floods have affected an estimated 4.5 million people across Pakistan, United Nations officials said on Friday, as relief workers warned that aid needs were “absolutely daunting”.

“The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates globally that 4.5 million people have been affected by the flooding,” said UN spokeswoman Elena Ponomareva, marking an increase of some 300,000 in a day.

Citing estimates from Pakistani authorities, UN relief agencies said an estimated 252,000 homes have been destroyed as relentless monsoon rains continue and flood water roll southwards through some of the poorest parts of the country. “As we’re hearing, the scale of the needs is absolutely daunting,” said Melissa Fleming, a spokeswoman for the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

Floods continue to destroy villages and important facilities in Punjab, while people are not happy with rehabilitation efforts in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

Rainfall last night caused the water level in Kot Addu to rise. Thousands of people have been stranded, many of them are homeless and waiting for government aid.

Hundreds of thousands of wheat bags were ruined due to floods at the PASCO center in Kot Adu. Authorities have starting erecting protective embankments around PARCO oil refinery, which is under threat of being submerged as well.