Karachi:
The mayor of Karachi, Murtaza Wahab, said on Wednesday that the recent downpour of the city was part of the widest challenge of climate change, which has also caused destruction in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir in recent days.
When addressing a press conference, he said that global warming and climate change were a reality and a test for administrations around the world, citing situations in New York, Dubai and Mumbai.
The mayor said that heavy rains left residents facing difficulties, with political criticism and annotations that exacerbate the situation further. He pointed out that Karachi rainwater drains have a capacity of only 40 mm. “When the rain exceeds this amount, the consequences become evident,” he said.
Read: The second rain spell hits Karachi
“Yesterday, Karachi also witnessed torrential rains,” he said, adding that two spells hit the city on the same day, with the first beginning of the morning. He said that drainage efforts were launched once the rain decreased and the conditions on the main roads had improved at 12.30 pm
A second spell reached around 1.15 pm, continued without stopping until the early hours of Wednesday, according to Wahab. Manghopir received 235 mm of rain, while more than 170 mm were recorded throughout the city in 12 hours.
He urged citizens to avoid unnecessary trips and warned that the greatest challenge during rescue operations was to maintain traffic flow.
