PAKISTAN Islamabad, more than 1,000 dead due to floods. The worst has not yet come

Authorities in Sindh, one of the provinces hit hardest by monsoons in recent weeks, expect more torrential rains to come from the north. Prime Minister Sharif compared the current situation to the 2010 floods, which killed nearly 2,000 people. The losses could amount to 10 billion dollars.

Islamabad ( / Agencies) – The National Disaster Management Authority affirmed that the death toll from the floods in Pakistan already exceeds 1,000 people; In the last 24 hours alone, about 120 have died. The government has declared a state of emergency, waiting for the monsoons to end to assess the real impact of the floods. For its part, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimates that more than 2.3 million people have been affected by torrential rains since mid-June, but in recent days government officials had raised that figure to at least 30 million citizens Pakistanis, 15% of the population, calling the situation a “climate-driven humanitarian disaster of epic proportions”. Nearly 95,000 houses were destroyed and more than 504,000 head of cattle died. Helicopters have difficulty finding solid ground to land and deliver aid.

Hardest hit are the southern provinces of Sindh and Balochistan, which this year saw above-average monsoon rains. Sindh recorded 784% more rain than normal and Baluchistan 500%. This is due to rising temperatures in the Indian Ocean, one of the world’s most sensitive regions to climate change. Rising sea temperatures combined with heat waves in May and June not only triggered the monsoons we are witnessing now, but also accelerated the melting of glaciers in the Gilgit Baltistan region in the north, generating glacial floods. In a series of chain events, not only is it raining more than usual, but also the water reserves in the Pakistani mountains, on the border with India, are being depleted.

Local authorities warned that the flooding of torrents and rivers will cause more damage in the coming days. In Sindh, the lives of thousands of people depend on the sukkur dam resistance which normally diverts the course of the Indus River towards agricultural land, completely flooded at this time. Years of neglect could mean the dams are unable to withstand the record volumes expected in the coming days. For now, all the gates have been opened to allow the flow of 600,000 cubic meters of water per second.

In big cities like Islamabad and Rawalpindi, which have not suffered major damage so far, vegetables are unavailable and the price of food that is still available has skyrocketed. The losses could cost the country up to 10 billion dollarsat a time when the economy is already severely affected by high inflation rates and a shortage of foreign currency.

Local officials say Pakistan is unfairly bearing the brunt of climate change fueled in other parts of the world. In the ranking prepared by the NGO Germanwatch, the country ranks eighth among the countries most vulnerable to extreme weather conditions. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that the damage suffered so far is comparable to that caused by the 2010 floods, which killed more than 2,000 people.