The 2020 Karachi floods (Urdu: سيلاب کراچی ) were the worst flooding Karachi had seen in almost a century, and killed at least 41 people.[1][2][3] The floods were caused by record monsoon rains from 24 to 27 August,[4] which were inadequately drained by poorly maintained drainage systems in the city.[5][6][7] The resulting floods caused deaths and destruction of infrastructure and properties in the city.[8]
| Date | 24 August 2020–27 August 2020 |
|---|---|
| Location | Karachi |
| Cause | Moonsoon rains |
| Deaths | 41 |
Background and Details of the 2020 Karachi Floods
editFlood Events in Pakistan
editFlooding is Pakistan's most threatening natural disaster.[9] There have been over 27 floods in Pakistan's history.[10]
Common Causes of Flooding in Pakistan
editThe frequency of floods has been increasing over time.[10] The causes of floods can be divided into factors affecting rainfall, and factors affecting water retention, such as drainage and deforestation.[11][12][13] Climate change is the primary cause of the increasing trend in flooding frequency and severity in Pakistan.[14]
2020 Karachi Floods
editIt has been the worst flooding since 1931 in Karachi, killing at least 41 people and leaving hundreds of thousands trapped.[15] The record monsoon rains with inadequate drainage systems in the city caused this flood.[8] The heavy rainfalls shattered all-time records for rainfall in a single day and other records.[16] During August 2020, 484 mm of rain fell and was the highest amount of rain in August back to 1931.[16] The rainfall for a single day set a new record of 223.5 mm,[16] surpassing the previous high of 211.3 mm set in 1967.
Landslides, infrastructure damage, and traffic jams[6] caused by the floods disrupted the daily lives of around 15 million residents.
Urban Conditions in the Flood
editFlooding engulfed the city, Karachi, bringing everything to a halt. There was a devastating damage to public infrastructures (such as broken electricity cables) and private properties (such as buildings collapsed).[7] These damages also brought about a series of subsequent crises, with eight people dying in Karachi as a result of a wall collapse.[17]
Causes of the Floods
editDeterioration of Drainage Channels
editThe damage of drains in Karachi, called nalas (such as Gujjar Nala) had been severe in recent years.[5] Residents were buying solid waste and compacted it along nalas to protect their homes and this move reduced the width of the nala.[5][6] In addition, since the only two landfills in Karachi at that time were far from the eastern city, lots of non-recyclable materials are thrown in to nalas.[5][8] As the development plan of Karachi was not implemented, the pressure of insufficient space for commercial activities forced the government to build bazaars over the nalas.[5]
Vast Population Increase and Lack of Development in Sewers
editAs the population of Karachi increased and the city expanded, the construction of various sectors is became far away from the gutter garden, which is one part of Karachi's sewage system. A planned sewage treatment plant was never built for these new sectors.[5][8]
Real Estate Development
editDue to the large-scale real estate development, many natural drainage channels and water collection depressions had been dismantled in the hilly formations north of the city. When it rains, the south of the area is completely flooded.[5]
Serious Institutional Issues
editThe central and provincial governments of Karachi were controlled by different political parties and their views cannot be unified to solve the infrastructure problems of Karachi furthermore government even failed to get sufficient investment to deal with drainage trouble.[5][6]
Types of Response
editLocal strategies
editLocal Government
editIn response to the catastrophic floods in Karachi,then Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah ordered that schools be used as resettlement sites for the displaced families.[18] According to the Sindh Health Department, the health department sprayed disinfectants to eliminate larvae to avert dengue and malaria epidemics after the massive floods.[19]
Pakistani Army & Other National Authority
editThe Pakistani army was also summoned to Karachi on July 30, 2020, to aid the civil authorities in addressing the city's flooding problem. Meanwhile, the Pakistan Army also collaborated with the local National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and Frontier Works Organization (FWO)to relief Karachi residents who had been affected by the monsoon rains. Additionally, they were also entrusted with cleaning up the debris left by the city's floods.[20] The Emergency Response Force (ERF) was also sent to help persons in need in many sites around Karachi on 20 August 2020.[21]
International Assistance
editBaitulmaal Response
edit
Local rescuers assisted by Baitulmaal (a Dallas-based international humanitarian organization) helped evacuate surviving residents of Karachi's Gulberg Town.[23] The team provided them with hot meals, water, hygiene supplies, and food parcels and provided drinking water to other flood-affected areas of Karachi, such as Yousuf Goth and Abdullah Town.[23] Employees of Baitulmaal delivered supplies via truck to individuals who were unable to escape in time.[23]
WFP Response
editThe World Food Programme (WFP) also responded to the unprecedented floods by supplying 95 MT of food aid to 1,780 affected households in Karachi on 22 September 2020.[24]
Other International Organization
editDuring the Karachi floods, the Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) worked closely with International organization such as the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC), the German Red Cross (GRC), the Norwegian Red Cross (NorCross), and the Turkish Red Crescent (TRCS) to give a timely response to Karachi's impacted citizens.[21]
Impact of the Floods
editPhysical Impact
editThe floods caused enormous physical damage to the area. Heavy rainfall caused flooding in Karachi, inundation of streets, houses and outdated urban drainage systems, and collapse of lines, resulting in large-scale power failure in the city.[25][26] 23 houses were partially damaged and 1 house was completely damaged.[27] The Pakistan government also reported that nearly 1 million acres of crops were destroyed by the floods. The fields of cotton, vegetables, onions, tomatoes, and sugarcane were affected.[28] In addition, the rainstorm destroyed the main infrastructure of the city and made the highway network impassable.[29] The entire residential area and market were flooded, causing losses worth millions of rupees to houses and enterprises.[30]
Immediate Mortality and Morbidity Implications
editThe floods in Karachi pose a threat to people's lives, not only causing casualties, but also contributing to the spread of disease. The flood caused at least 34 people were killed, nine were injured.[27] Meanwhile, it increased the risk of Dengue fever outbreak due to poor flood control and water treatment facilities, and many cases have been reported after the flood outbreak. COVID-19 pandemic was also being controlled by health authorities at the same time.[31]
Health Consequences
editShort-term Consequences
editIn 2020, the province of Sindh had reported 733 cases of dengue in the first 8 months, with about 92% of the cases being reported in Karachi. At least 10 more dengue cases had been reported in the city during flood.[32] COVID-related disruptions severely impeding diagnosis and treatment of the diseases, access to relief from floods as well as affordability of mosquito nets.
Studies have shown that the amount of rainfall is the single most crucial factor for dengue virus transmission. Water retained on rooftops and containers after heavy rain episodes become the ideal breeding spots for Aedes mosquitoes,[32] which unfortunately, was also the source of drinking water for refugees due to unavailability of water.[33] Different water and vector borne diseases had already emerged after heavy flooding, such as dengue, malaria, diarrhea, typhoid and hepatitis.[34]
Long-term Consequences
editMortality rates were found to increase by up to 50% in the first year post-flood.[35]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "41 killed in Karachi rains in two days | SAMAA". Samaa TV. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ "In pictures: Torrential rain floods Karachi, shatters records". DAWN.COM. Reuters. 27 August 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ "Almost 50 killed in three days of monsoon rain across Pakistan". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ https://economics.iba.edu.pk/files/priliminary-survey-on-monsoon-rain.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Urban flooding: the case of Karachi". International Institute for Environment and Development. 27 October 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ a b c d Hasan, Arif (6 September 2020). "WHY KARACHI FLOODS". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ a b "Record Rains, Urban Flooding Woes Continue in Karachi". VOA. 31 August 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ a b c d "In Karachi, Flooding Lays Bare City's Governance Issues". United States Institute of Peace. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ Tariq, Muhammad Atiq Ur Rehman; van de Giesen, Nick (2012). "Floods and flood management in Pakistan". Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts A/B/C. 47–48: 11–20. Bibcode:2012PCE....47...11T. doi:10.1016/j.pce.2011.08.014.
- ^ a b Mansoor Raza (31 August 2022). "Pakistan's history of disasters and the lessons we fail to learn". PreventionWeb.
- ^ Abdul, Rehman; Luan, Jingdong; Youneng, Du; Rafia, Khatoon; Babar, Shahzad (30 September 2015). "Financial Crisis in Pakistan and ITS Impact on Agricultural Growth (A Review)". Theoretical & Applied Science. 29 (9): 52–57. doi:10.15863/tas.2015.09.29.13. ISSN 2308-4944.
- ^ "Pakistan Floods: Causes and Consequences | Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses". idsa.in. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ "Flooding in Pakistan: A grave consequence of climate change". Global Village Space. 12 August 2021. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ "AS CASE STUDY : Pakistan Flooding". GCSE and A Level Geography Blog. 7 February 2016. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ "Pakistan: Karachi experiences worst floods in almost a century, dozens dead | DW | 28.08.2020". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ a b c Ali, Dawn com | Qazi Hassan | Imtiaz (27 August 2020). "At least 19 killed amid urban flooding as Karachi records highest rainfall in a day ever". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ "Monsoon Rains Wreak Havoc Across Pakistan, Killing At Least 63 People". HuffPost. 29 August 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ "Floods Kill 23 In Pakistan's Karachi, Heavy Rain Expected To Continue". NDTV.com. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
- ^ "Waterborne diseases, dengue surge in Karachi after urban flooding". www.thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ "Urban flooding: Army called in Karachi". www.thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
- ^ a b "Emergency Plan of Action (EPoA) Pakistan: Monsoon Floods" (PDF). Reliefweb. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 October 2021.
- ^ "Baitulmaal Responds to 2020 Monsoon Floods in Pakistan". Archived from the original on 18 September 2020.
- ^ a b c Baitulmaal. "Baitulmaal Responds to 2020 Monsoon Floods in Pakistan | Baitulmaal". Retrieved 31 October 2021.
- ^ "WFP Pakistan – Sindh Flood Response Situation Report #5" (PDF). Reliefweb. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 September 2020.
- ^ "Pakistan floods: at least 90 killed in monsoon rains". The Guardian. Associated Press. 26 August 2020. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
- ^ Karachi, Associated Press in (28 August 2020). "Pakistan floods leave dozens dead and people angry at lack of help". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
- ^ a b "MUSLIM AID PAKISTAN | PAKISTAN FLOODS EMERGENCY 2020 SITUATION UPDATE REPORT" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 September 2020.
- ^ "Extreme Monsoon Rains in Pakistan". earthobservatory.nasa.gov. 24 September 2020. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
- ^ "Pakistan: Monsoon rains cause widespread flooding in Karachi August 25". GardaWorld. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
- ^ "Why is Karachi drowning and could we have prevented it?". euronews. 7 September 2020. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
- ^ Junaid Tahir, Muhammad; Rizwan Siddiqi, Ahsun; Ullah, Irfan; Ahmed, Ali; Dujaili, Juman; Saqlain, Muhammad (30 October 2020). "Devastating urban flooding and dengue outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan". Medical Journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran. 34: 169. doi:10.47176/mjiri.34.169. PMC 8004574. PMID 33816368.
- ^ a b Junaid Tahir, Muhammad; Rizwan Siddiqi, Ahsun; Ullah, Irfan; Ahmed, Ali; Dujaili, Juman; Saqlain, Muhammad (15 December 2020). "Devastating urban flooding and dengue outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan". Medical Journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran. 34: 169. doi:10.47176/mjiri.34.169. ISSN 1016-1430. PMC 8004574. PMID 33816368.
- ^ "Disaster in Karachi 2020". 17 November 2020. Archived from the original on 18 February 2022.
- ^ Baqir, Maryam; Sobani, Zain A; Bhamani, Amyn; Bham, Nida Shahab; Abid, Sidra; Farook, Javeria; Beg, M Asim (1 January 2012). "Infectious diseases in the aftermath of monsoon flooding in Pakistan". Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine. 2 (1): 76–79. doi:10.1016/s2221-1691(11)60194-9. ISSN 2221-1691. PMC 3609207. PMID 23569839.
- ^ Alderman, Katarzyna; Turner, Lyle R.; Tong, Shilu (15 October 2012). "Floods and human health: A systematic review". Environment International. 47: 37–47. doi:10.1016/j.envint.2012.06.003. ISSN 0160-4120. PMID 22750033.