Daily Times

Cyclonic Storm “Asna” has moved westward over the northeast Arabian Sea and was located approximately 120 km south of Karachi, 180 km southwest of Thatta, 250 km southeast of Ormara, and 440 km east-southeast of Gwadar till the filing of this reports.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) announced on Friday night the storm was positioned at Latitude 23.8 N and Longitude 66.6 E. According to the PMD, Asna is expected to continue moving initially west-northwestward and then shift to a west-southwestward trajectory.

Under the influence of Asna, rain and thunderstorms, accompanied by heavy downpours and squally winds of 60-70 km/h, gusting up to 80 km/h, are expected in Karachi, Badin, Thatta, Sujawal, Hyderabad, Tando Muhammad Khan, Tando Allahyar, Matiari, Jamshoro, and Dadu districts of Sindh until August 31. Similar weather conditions are forecast for the districts of Hub, Lasbella, Awaran, Kech, and Gwadar in Balochistan until September 1.

The PMD has warned that heavy rains may cause waterlogging in low-lying areas along the Makran coast.

Sea conditions are likely to remain rough to very rough, with squally winds reaching speeds of 60-70 km/h, gusting up to 80 km/h. Fishermen from Sindh are advised to avoid venturing into the sea until August 31, while those from Balochistan should refrain from doing so until September 1.

High-speed winds of up to 30-45 kilometres per hour swept across Karachi, causing widespread damage, including the toppling of trees and signboards.

Meanwhile, schools in Karachi and Hyderabad as well as in parts of Kutch district in India’s Gujarat were shut, officials said, as heavy rain lashed both places.

Separately, a landslide crushed a house in the Patrak area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Upper Dir on Friday resulting in the deaths of 13 members of a single family.

Rescue sources reported that heavy rainfall late at night caused the landslide. The family, including three women and a child, were sleeping when their house collapsed in the remote area of Patrak, in the Upper Dir district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

“The landslide in Patrak completely destroyed the house, killing all 12 individuals inside,” Bilal Faizi, a spokesman for the rescue service 1122, told AFP.

Moreover, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) on Friday in its report regarding losses from monsoon and subsequent rains said that so far 68 people have been killed in KP from rain-related incidents.

In its report the PDMA said the current season’s rains have killed 68 people in the province in incidents such as roof and wall collapse and other rain related mishaps. The rains have also caused damage to 786 houses in KP of which 200 were completely destroyed.