Every summer, powerful monsoons sweep through Pakistan, destroying homes and killing citizens. The storms grow more dangerous each year due to climate change, and many criticize Pakistan’s government for ignoring the issue.
The monsoons affect the whole country, but major cities, such as Karachi, the largest city in Pakistan, suffer the most damage. Their roads are full of water and are practically unusable. The electricity was shut off for days to prevent open wires from electrocuting people in the water. Bustling markets have lost thousands of goods to the rising floods.
Pakistan citizens are furious at their government, claiming that the country has failed to prepare its cities against the annual monsoons. Before the storms rolled in, the roads were cracking and the slums were growing. When the floods began to invade homes, the government was nowhere to be found.
“It took us nearly two days to clean the water and get the house back to normal. There was no help from the government,” Murtaza Hussain, who lives right outside of Karachi, said. “Every year, the government says there will be no flooding, but the problem is getting worse.”
Hussain watched as the floods stole his furniture and destroyed his valuables. Water filled every house in his entire neighborhood, and at least one of Hussain’s neighbors drowned as a result. Yet, he is merely one of millions of residents in Karachi.
Danish, a carpenter in Karachi, was driving with his wife and two children on a flooded road when the family fell into an open drain. Bystanders helped rescue Danish and his 3-year-old, but his wife and 2-year-old sadly drowned.
“It was not rain that killed my wife and child,” Danish said. “It was the government’s incompetence and people’s helplessness.”
According to the National Disaster Management Authority, at least 282 people have died in the past 5 weeks because of the rain. The weather also damaged highways, bridges, and around 5,600 homes. “This is a national disaster,” Sherry Rehman, Pakistan’s minister for climate change, said at a news conference this month.
Rehman believes that the new weather is a result of climate change. As temperatures rise, the country’s glaciers melt, creating brutal flash floods. However, experts predict that the weather will only get worse in the next few years. Rehman says that the amount of rain from this year is 87 percent higher than the average, proving that the weather is escalating.
Climate change’s expansion and the government’s absence has led to devastation across Pakistan. However, conservation efforts and active projects can help prevent the next disaster. Murtaza Wahab, the Karachi administrator, said that the damage could have been worse if the city had not installed new drains and unclogged old ones beforehand. Preventative measures are effective, but Karachi simply needs more of them.
The monsoons affect the whole country, but major cities, such as Karachi, the largest city in Pakistan, suffer the most damage. Their roads are full of water and are practically unusable. The electricity was shut off for days to prevent open wires from electrocuting people in the water. Bustling markets have lost thousands of goods to the rising floods.
Pakistan citizens are furious at their government, claiming that the country has failed to prepare its cities against the annual monsoons. Before the storms rolled in, the roads were cracking and the slums were growing. When the floods began to invade homes, the government was nowhere to be found.
“It took us nearly two days to clean the water and get the house back to normal. There was no help from the government,” Murtaza Hussain, who lives right outside of Karachi, said. “Every year, the government says there will be no flooding, but the problem is getting worse.”
Hussain watched as the floods stole his furniture and destroyed his valuables. Water filled every house in his entire neighborhood, and at least one of Hussain’s neighbors drowned as a result. Yet, he is merely one of millions of residents in Karachi.
Danish, a carpenter in Karachi, was driving with his wife and two children on a flooded road when the family fell into an open drain. Bystanders helped rescue Danish and his 3-year-old, but his wife and 2-year-old sadly drowned.
“It was not rain that killed my wife and child,” Danish said. “It was the government’s incompetence and people’s helplessness.”
According to the National Disaster Management Authority, at least 282 people have died in the past 5 weeks because of the rain. The weather also damaged highways, bridges, and around 5,600 homes. “This is a national disaster,” Sherry Rehman, Pakistan’s minister for climate change, said at a news conference this month.
Rehman believes that the new weather is a result of climate change. As temperatures rise, the country’s glaciers melt, creating brutal flash floods. However, experts predict that the weather will only get worse in the next few years. Rehman says that the amount of rain from this year is 87 percent higher than the average, proving that the weather is escalating.
Climate change’s expansion and the government’s absence has led to devastation across Pakistan. However, conservation efforts and active projects can help prevent the next disaster. Murtaza Wahab, the Karachi administrator, said that the damage could have been worse if the city had not installed new drains and unclogged old ones beforehand. Preventative measures are effective, but Karachi simply needs more of them.