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-Signs, Portents, and the Weather-
Efforts on to plug breaches as water sweeps towards Johi
2010-09-06
[Pak Daily Times] Authorities were on Sunday trying to protect the town of Johi from floodwaters, which had already inundated several villages in Dadu district and were threatening Dadu city.

Thousands of people struggled to fill the cracks in Juhi Bund while the city was cut off form Saeedabad, Sehwan Sharif and Dadu. "We are trying our best to protect Johi town, threatened by ravaging floodwaters," district administration chief Iqbal Memon told AFP. The town has a population of 60,000 and officials fear that floodwaters will breach surrounding embankments unless they are quickly strengthened. "The floodwaters are fast heading towards Johi town after inundating most parts of Khairpur Nathan Shah town and Mehar town and several surrounding villages in Dadu district," he said. "We are right now employing all available means to strengthen the protective embankments around Johi but the threat still remains," he said, adding that 70 percent of the town's population had already fled to safer areas.
Given the quality of Pakistani construction, I'd flee, too.
Memon said 90 percent of the people of Khairpur Nathan Shah, Mehar town and surrounding villages, which jointly had a population of around 300,000, had fled to nearby towns that have been spared by floods. However, a few thousand people who remained stranded in Khairpur Nathan Shah, Mehar town and surrounding villages were being evacuated to safety by naval boats and helicopters. "I have been stranded here with at least 10 other villagers since yesterday after water inundated our village and we immediately need help and food," Usman Qureshi, resident of a small village near Khairpur Nathan Shah village, said. Qureshi told AFP by mobile phone, "We need help, water and food... we beg you to please contact rescuers and ask them to evacuate us," said Qureshi, who took shelter at the lone two-storey building in the village. Meanwhile, troops rescued 300 people from the flooded Jati town and 47 from Khairpur Nathan Shah to safer places, the military said in a statement.

Floodwaters were gushing towards Mehar as the breach in Suprio Bund widened to 200 feet, inundating about 1,500 villages, a private TV channel reported on Sunday. According to reports, no machinery was available in Dadu to plug the breach. Around 80 percent of Mehar residents had been moved to safer places. Dadu city is also under threat from floodwaters, while 600,000 people are still living in the city. At least 450 villages of Mehar tehsil were flooded. In a bid to save Mehar city, it had been decided to divert floodwaters towards Khairpur Nathan Shah by breaking the Mehar Drain. Mehar residents were migrating to safer places. Khairpur Nathan Shah was completely under water and at least 250,000 residents were forced to evacuate the city. Meanwhile, water level in Kotri, Sukkur and Guddu barrages had started receding with inflow in Sukkur Barrage at 351,460 cusecs and Guddu 736,000 cusecs. On the other hand, at least 14 people lost their lives due to gastroenteritis and other diseases in interior Sindh.
Posted by:Fred

#1  This is Insh'Allah on steroids.
Posted by: Alaska Paul at ANC   2010-09-06 02:31  

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