The Never-ending Flooding in Pakistan

The recent floods are not only incredibly disruptive, the impact tells us that the floods are more devastating than that. We already know that several million Pakistanis will be displaced due to damaged homes, damaged crops and damaged infrastructure. We also know that cholera, typhoid, hepatitis, dengue, malaria, diarrhoea and dehydration are likely to haunt Pakistan’s poorest citizens. Waterborne diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera, typhoid fever and leptospirosis are diseases that come from drinking or coming into contact with contaminated water as opposed to the vector-borne diseases like malaria and dengue fever. Both forms are likely to be around during the floods. As always the floods are the last thing that poorer Pakistanis need. Poorer Pakistanis with unprotected homes live in constant fear because their homes will be demolished if it rains for many weeks and months without stopping. Rebuilding their lives/restoring their livelihoods will take years and the destruction is likely to set Pakistan back many years too.

Critical infrastructure such as highways, bridges and roads will definitely get damaged/blocked and plenty of livestock will die (thousands of livestock animals) if it rains continuously. If the rain continues, so will the devastation. If entire neighbourhoods are deluged by the heavy rains, people’s properties and people’s valuables will not be safe. The economic fallout will be catastrophic and nothing will function properly. That includes the electricity. To make things worse, the flooding causes sewages to overflow to the point where water supply/sanitation facilities get damaged and contaminated. But it’s not just water though, the quality and cleanliness of food diminish immediately during the floods which means more food insecurity and malnutrition.

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif promised compensation packages for those displaced during the heavy monsoon rains and flash floods that have led to disruptions across the entire country, turning roads into rivers and leaving numerous Pakistanis stranded. The Prime Minister visited the worst areas and his promises to the victims included help from the federal and provincial governments and packages of one million rupees for each victim.

Hundreds of Pakistanis have already perished during the floods. That is why addressing climate change properly and finding solutions such as reducing emissions is an important mission (inconsistent temperatures thus more precipitation). Climate change minister Sherry Rehman claims that the recent rainfall has been 87% heavier than in previous years. That figure shows just how pressing environmental instability is and the death toll proves that we are dealing with a threat that is just as serious as terrorism (www.washingtonpost.com confirms this). A matter of national security according to Sherry Rehman.

Preparing for such catastrophes will be a tough challenge, as extreme weather events are difficult to stop. However, better facilities, less uncovered manholes, less pollution, less litter and less blocked drains would be a lot less problematic. If 9.1% of Pakistan’s GDP is robbed as a result of climate change and over twenty billion dollars vanish (as is predicted by www.washingtonpost.com), it makes sense to combat climate change from all angles as rigorously as possible.

Unfortunately, the torrential rains always expose Pakistan’s substandard infrastructure, including the drainage systems. Proper drainage systems must be designed. It is definitely safe to say that the impact of the floods is devastating like most natural disasters, yet these floods are like an all in one catastrophe with diseases lingering, people drowning and people getting electrocuted whilst the dirty water sticks around for weeks during the aftermath. As a consequence the recent floods will feel like a never-ending catastrophe. One that will gradually fizzle out once the torrential rains finally come to an end.