By Staff Reporter
KARACHI: A cyclone brewing over the Arabian Sea is expected to make landfall in southern Pakistan on Friday, threatening to unleash heavy rain and strong winds on the coastal province of Sindh, the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said.
“A deep depression over the Rann of Kutch has very slowly moved west/southwest over the last 12 hours and now lies around 270 kilometers east/southeast of Karachi,” the PMD said in a statement.
“The system is likely to move west/southwestwards and emerge into northeast Arabian Sea along Sindh coast by late night/tomorrow morning,” it added. “Due to favorable environmental conditions, the system is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm by tomorrow and initially move in the west/southwest direction.”
Widespread rain and thunderstorms, along with isolated heavy rainfall, are expected till Aug. 31, with occasional gaps in the Karachi division as well as Tharparkar, Badin, Thatta, Sujawal, Hyderabad, Tando Muhammad Khan, Tando Allahyar, Matiari, Umerkot, Mirpurkhas, Sanghar, Jamshoro, Dadu, and Shaheed Benazirabad districts.
“Sea conditions are likely to remain very rough with squally winds of 50 to 60 km per hour,” the PMD alert warned, advising fishermen not to venture into the sea till Aug. 31.
“PMD’s cyclone warning center in Karachi is monitoring the system and will issue the update accordingly,” the statement said. “The concerned authorities are requested to keep them abreast through PMD advisory.”
In view of the PMD alert, a ban on “fishermen venturing into the sea, as well as on swimming, bathing, diving, and wading in the sea/beaches and coastal areas” of Karachi Division has been imposed, effective from today till Aug. 31 (Saturday).
“The ban has been imposed under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to avoid any untoward incident of drowning and to save precious lives of the general public,” said Karachi Commissioner office said.
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah ordered the local administration and all relevant departments to remain vigilant. “All necessary preparations needed to deal with any emergency situation should be completed,” CM Murad was quoted as saying in a statement issued by his spokesperson.
The chief minister also directed the health department to ensure that the province’s hospitals “improved their arrangements”. He also issued instructions to the fisheries department regarding fishermen’s safety amid “extraordinary sea conditions”.
“Continue monitoring the rivers, streams, and other water passages,” CM Murad ordered the water department.
The monsoon season has brought widespread flooding and landslides across South Asia, with neighboring India reporting at least 24 killed and almost 24,000 relocated in the western state of Gujarat since Sunday.
Pakistan is highly vulnerable to climate change effects, with an estimated 200,000 people potentially affected by the ongoing monsoon season. In 2022, heavy rains triggered flash floods that killed over 1,700 people, inflicted $30 billion in losses, and affected 30 million people.
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