2011 Sindh floods

2011 Sindh floods

Location of Sindh,
Date August 2011–September 2011
Location Sindh, southern Balochistan, eastern Punjab and Azad Kashmir
Deaths At least 434 dead, 8.9 million affected
Property damage 8.9 million affected, 2.7 million children affected, 6.79 million acres land damaged, 1.52 million homes damaged[1]

The flood was originated mostly because of rainfall and observed the highest ever recorded monsoon rain in Sindh started from Aug 11, 2011 to Sept 14, 2011. So the inundated area increased respectively with rainfall and ceased on Sept 15, 2011 effectively with the stop of rainfall. After Sept 15, 2011 the inundated area was reduced with the rate of 167 km2/day.[2] The floods caused considerable damage; an estimated 434 civilians were killed, with 5.3 million people and 1,524,773 homes affected.[3] Sindh is a fertile region and often called the "breadbasket" of the country; the damage and toll of the floods on the local agrarian economy was extensive. At least 1.7 million acres of arable land was inundated as a result of the flooding.[3] The flooding followed the previous year's historic 2010 Pakistan floods, which devastated the entire country.[3] Unprecedented torrential monsoon rains caused severe flooding in 16 districts of Sindh province.[4]

Causes

In the month of July Pakistan received below normal monsoon rains; however in August and September the country received above normal monsoon rains. A strong weather pattern entered the areas of Sindh from the Indian states of Rajasthan and Gujarat in August and gained strength with the passage of time and caused heavy downpours. The four weeks of continuous rain have created an unprecedented flood situation in Sindh.[4][5][6]

The District Badin in Sindh province received record breaking rainfall of 615.3 millimeters (24.22 in) during the monsoon spell breaking earlier recorded 121 millimeters (4.8 in) in Badin in 1936. The area of Mithi also received record rainfall of 1,290 millimeters (51 in) during the spell, where maximum rainfall was recorded 114 millimeters (4.5 in) in Mithi in 2004. The heavy cloudburst during last 48–72 hours displaced many people besides destroying crops in the area. The Met Office had informed all district coordination officers, Provincial Disaster Management Authority, chief secretaries and chief ministers about the heavy monsoon rain-spell two days earlier to take precautionary measures.

It was found that severe flood occurred in Badin and inundated it by 3820.39 km2, Mirpurkhas by 1836.26 km2, Jacobabad by 1352.32 km2, Shahdadkot by 1597.50 km2, Dadu by 1887.57 km2 and Sanghar by 2494.18 km2, in cumulative. Furthermore the above-mentioned districts contributed 61% of the total inundated area among 23 districts in Sindh.[2]

Qamar uz Zaman Chaudhry, Director General Pakistan Meteorological Department said: "the rains in Sindh are the highest ever recorded monsoon rains during the four weeks period of August and September, 2011. Before the start of these rains in the second week of August, Sindh was under severe drought conditions and it had not received any rainfall for the last 12 months. The last severe rainfall flooding in Sindh occurred in July 2003," he said and added, "but this time the devastating rains of Mithi, Mirpurkhas, Diplo, Parker, Nawabshah, Badin, Chhor, Padidan, and Hyderabad etc during the four weeks period have created unprecedented flood situation in Sindh." According to Dr. Qamar, the total volume of water fallen over Sindh during the four weeks is estimated to be above 37 million acre feet, “which is unimaginable.[4] The August monsoon rainfall, over province of Sindh (271% above normal) is the heaviest recorded during the period 1961–2011.[7]

Torrential rainfall recorded in August and September in Sindh

The following are the heavy rainfalls recorded in Sindh province in the months of August and September 2011 based on data from the Pakistan Meteorological Department.[8] The first monsoon spell hit the southern parts of Sindh on 10 August. It produced record breaking widespread torrential rainfalls and resulted in floods in district Badin. The second spell hit the areas on 30 August and lasted until 2 September.

In the month of September four more consecutive spells of monsoon rainfall devastated the southern parts of the province. The first spell of September hit the already inundated parts of the province on 2 September. Thereafter, the second spell hit on 5 September, the third on 9 September, and the fourth on 12 September 2011.[9] The four spells of monsoon produced even more devastating torrential rains in the already affected areas of Sindh.[4]

City August Rainfall (mm) Rainfall (in) September Rainfall (mm) Rainfall (in) Total Rainfall (mm) Total Rainfall (in) Notes References
Mithi 530* 21.0 760* 30.0 1290* 51.0 [A] [4][10][11]
Mirpur Khas 263.1* 10.3 603* 23.7 866.1* 34.1 [A] [4][10][11]
Nawabshah 275.2* 10.8 353.2* 13.9 628.4* 24.7 [A] [4][10][11]
Badin 331.2* 13.0 284.1 11.1 615.3* 24.2 [A] [4][10][11]
Chhor 276 10.9 268 10.6 544* 21.4 [A] [4][10][11]
Dadu 134.1 5.2 348.1 13.7 482.2* 18.9 [A] [4][10][11]
Padidan 251.2 9.8 172 6.8 423.2* 16.6 [A] [4][10][11]
Hyderabad 162.2 6.3 244.2 9.6 406.4 16.0 [4][10][11]
Karachi 61.2 2.4 212.2 8.3 273.3 10.7 [4][10][11]

* Indicates new record.

Heaviest spell of monsoon rains of 2011 in Sindh

Following are the heaviest rainfalls recorded in the monsoon spell in Sindh province in the months of August and September 2011 based on data from the Pakistan Meteorological Department.[8]

City Rainfall (mm) Rainfall (in) Monsoon Spell Notes
Mithi 760 30.0 1 to 14 September* [10][11]
Mirpur Khas 603 23.7 1 to 14 September [10][11]
Padidan 356 14.0 30 August to 4 September* [10][11]
Nawabshah 353.2 13.9 1 to 14 September [10][11]
Dadu 348.1 13.7 1 to 14 September [10][11]
Badin 302.1 11.8 10 to 14 August* [10][11]
Chhor 268 10.6 1 to 14 September [10][11]
Hyderabad 244.2 9.6 1 to 14 September [10][11]
Karachi 212.2 8.3 1 to 14 September [10][11]

Flooding and impact

Millions of people have been affected because of heavy rains that started in August, coinciding with monsoon season. Rural villages have become particularly affected. The area of Sanghar is declared as the most dangerous region. In the aftermath of the monsoon rains, Oxfam warned that aid should be provided to Pakistanis or they will die. 8,920,631  people have been affected because of floods. 433 people are said to have been killed.[12]

Protests by flood victims

Some Pakistanis affected by the flood are protesting the government's response as slow and inadequate. Aid organizations have reported that some ruling party politicians and officials are distributing aid only to their party supporters and people from their villages.[13]

Health concerns

Diseases spread

Gastroenteritis and malaria have killed many of infected people.

Domestic reaction

A special wing of the ministry of the Government of Sindh has been created to deal with the flooding. The Chief Minister of Sindh Qaim Ali Shah has visited the affected areas, announcing a million rupees in relief for each of flood victims. Various politicians are also engaged in setting up relief camps for the victims. A helpline 0800-11-121 has been set up for the victims.

The Pakistani Army and Navy are actively engaged in flood relief and helping victims. According to aid organization Save the Children, the flooding is more disastrous than that during the 2004 tsunami.[13]

International reactions to the floods

See also

Notes

A. ^ Indicates new record. Record-breaking torrential monsoon rains in Sindh.

References

  1. ↑ "Flood Damage". CNN World. 15 September 2011. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  2. 1 2 Haq, M., Akhtar, M., Muhammad, S., Paras, S., & Rahmatullah, J. (2012). "Techniques of Remote Sensing and GIS for flood monitoring and damage assessment: A case study of Sindh province, Pakistan". The Egyptian Journal of Remote Sensing and Space Science 15 (2): 135–141.
  3. 1 2 3 "Floods worsen, 270 killed: officials". The Express Tribune. 13 September 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2011.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Government of Pakistan. Pakmet.com.pk. Retrieved on 19 September 2011.
  5. ↑ "Daily Express News Story". Daily Express. 12 September 2011. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
  6. ↑ "2011 Sindh Floods". The Star Online. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
  7. ↑ Monsoon 2011. Pakmet.com.pk. Retrieved on 19 September 2011.
  8. 1 2 Pakistan Meteorological Department. Pakmet.com.pk (5 October 2010). Retrieved on 19 September 2011.
  9. ↑ Weather Advisory & Press Releases. Pakmet.com.pk. Retrieved on 19 September 2011.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 https://web.archive.org/20120330124646/http://www.pakmet.com.pk/FFD/index_files/daily/rainfallaug.htm. Archived from the original on 30 March 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2011. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
  12. ↑ "28 September 2011" (PDF).
  13. 1 2 Guerin, Orla (17 October 2011). "Pakistan's Sindh province remains hostage to flood water". BBC News. Retrieved 19 October 2011.
  14. 1 2 "Pakistan floods: Oxfam launches emergency aid response". BBC World News South Asia. 14 September 2011. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  15. ↑ "UN Relief". The Nation. 12 September 2011. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
  16. 1 2 3 "Heavy rains, floods kill 233, affect 5.5 million in Pakistan". CNN World. 14 September 2011. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  17. ↑ "Foreign Aid". Daily News. 13 September 2011. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
  18. ↑ "Aid pours in from Japan, US for Sindh flood survivors". Pakistan Today. 13 September 2011. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  19. ↑ "Japan aid for flood victims". Frontier Post. 14 September 2011. Retrieved 16 September 2011.

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