Changing of the climate minister Sherri Rehman said on Sunday that the unprecedented rain had caused a “climate catastrophe”. with floodwaters homesdestroying farmland and displacing millions of people.
“We had to deploy a fleet for in first it’s time to act in Indo-Pakistan, because a lot of it looks like small ocean,” she told German TV channel Deutsche Welle.
On Monday, death The death toll has risen to 1,061 since mid-June, according to the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA), as incessant rain has raised concerns. of more deaths are coming.
“By this time over, we might well one quarter or one third of Pakistan is under water,” Rehman told a Turkish news Outlet TRT Mir on Thursday.
On Monday, new satellite imagery from Maxar Technologies showed the scale of catastrophe — homes and fields completely flooded along the Indus River, as well as cities of Rajanpur and Rojhan in Punjab, the most populous province of Pakistan.
A video released by the Pakistani army shows troops staging a treacherous helicopter rescue operation. of people stuck in flood waters, including one boy in a trap on rocks in middle of raging river in northwest of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Rapid flash floods are destroyed more over 3,000 kilometers (1,864 miles) of road, 130 bridges and 495,000 homes have been damaged according to NDMA latest situation report, drafting access even in flooded areas more difficult.
This was announced on Sunday by Foreign Minister Bilawal Butto-Zardari. year, the rainy season was “absolutely devastating”.
“I saw neither destruction nor desolation of This scale, – said Butto-Zardari. – It is very difficult for me to put into words the phraseology that we are used to, whether it is monsoon rains or floods, it does not seem to fully reflect the ongoing destruction and disasters that we are still experiencing. testify”.
BUT national disaster
After meeting with ambassadors and diplomats in Islamabad on On Friday he called for help from international community.
Monday Peter Offoff, IFRC head delegate in Pakistan said help network filed an appeal for more over $25 million in emergency relief for approximately 324,000 people in country.
“Looking at the incredible damage caused by the floods is gradually becoming clear to us that relief efforts would take a very long time. There will be a long swampy road ahead when people of Pakistan started its journey back to what’s left of them homes”Offoff said.
More than 3.1 million people were supplanted by “marine-like” flood water that damaged more how half million homes in several districts across the country, according to the International Federation’s statement Saturday. of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
Abrar ul Haq, Chairman of help network in Pakistan said on Friday that water is not the only challenge for humanitarian workers in in region.
“These torrential floods have severely limited transport and mobility. The threat of Covid-19 and damage vehicles, infrastructure and communications make our relief work nearly impossible. Most of affected also immobile or abandoned us hard get to them,” he said.
‘monsoon monster of decade’
Pakistan already fighting through its eighth cycle of monsoon rains, Rehman said Thursday anomaly in a country that usually has three or four such rainy spells in a year.
Pakistan is experiencing one of the worst climate disasters of in worldRehman said. in video statement.
“We are at this moment on earth zero of Front line of extreme weather eventswhich we have seen since the beginning of this year from an inexorable cascade of heat waves, forest fires, floods, multiple glacial lake outbursts events and now monster rain season of decade”.
In a comment on Sunday, Butto-Zardari said Pakistan was bearing the brunt of climate change, like others countries with a larger carbon footprint does little to reduce their emissions.
“Pakistan contributes little to the overall carbon footprint, but we are devastated by climate disasters like these from time to time. again, and we must adapt within our limited resources,” he said.
