NEVER HEARD OF HEAT WAVE PRIOR TO THE SUDDEN STROKE
Back in the day, when summer season were to arrive, we had never heard of anything as a heat wave. In the year of 2015, a heat stroke was heard to strike the country with immense pressure and power. At the time, it wasn’t considered to be much of a deal as an event similar to it had not been witnessed prior to it. But, when the heat wave struck, it killed about two-thousand people. The province effected was mostly that of Sindh as people underwent the drastic heat. Not only were the lives of humans effected but the animals were found to be dying as well. People were advised to strictly stay inside their homes and keep themselves hydrated as much as possible in the extremely hot weather.
THE WAVE FINALLY ARRIVES
The arrival of heat wave shook the people and the environmental protection agency realized it to be due to the severe global warming taking place, the rapid urbanization and the process of deforestation aggravated the earth’s temperature to rise and cause such events to occur. Emergency was declared in all the government hospitals as cases of heat strokes came rapidly.
WEATHER SITUATION IN 2017
This year, in 2017, a heat wave was predicted to hit the country in the month of April with temperatures as high as 51 degrees centigrade, breaking the previous heat records. In the month of March, the wave enveloped almost all the interior Sindh areas including Nawabshah and Larkana with a temperature of 43 degrees centigrade. the month of April of 2017 was said to be the hottest month in the past twenty years. Dust storms and light rain followed the wave, breaking the heat but damaged the crops.
STRICT WARNINGS AND ADVISE ISSUED FOR 2018
This year in 2018, the warning was issued to the residents of Karachi to prepare themselves for the worst weather to be experienced yet as temperatures would strike as high as 45 degrees, that too, in the Holy month of Ramadan when people have to keep themselves restrained from eating and drinking for about a good fifteen hours. The scorching sun even forced the Federal Board of Intermediate to postpone the examinations, showing concern for the students in this cruel weather. So far, the death has risen to sixty-five reported by the trust of Abdul-Sattar Edhi. The weather situation is a huge peril and instant action must be taken for protection of the people from causing even more disruption. Not each individual is able to afford expensive air conditioners and pay the high bills.
IT IS HIGH TIME FOR THE GOVERNMENT TO RAISE CONCERN AND TAKE ACTION
Disappointingly, the government of Sindh has not yet showed any hint of taking inhibitory measures to alleviate the imposition of the intense weather conditions. Moreover, there have been complaints of the deficiency of water which is aggravating and causing restlessness among the citizens. Following this news, the electricity outage is another matter at large and it is alarming and causing the people to worry regarding the near future.
IS KARACHI GOING THROUGH UHI?
The city of Karachi is experiencing a phenomenon what we call Urban Heat Island, short for UHI, in which the heat gets confined in the city with no escape route throughout the day and due to the infrastructure and the concrete steel, it makes the situation adverse. That’s the reason why we feel our houses to be hotter due to the thick walls and the materials used to build them. Why do even feel hot at night? Because the nights aren’t long enough for the city to evade heat, resulting in the temperature rise of the city. The government must take action for such alarming events and map out a complete and proper plan for the mitigation of the catastrophic situations especially due to the heat waves increasing in intensity each year.
MARGALLA HILL FIRE ERUPTION
Remember, how we would hear of the California forest fires in the United States of America as a cause of the extreme hot weather? A similar situation has begun to hit Pakistan. Margalla hills has been catching fire every now and then and due to human errors of course but, this time of the year the immense heat wave has caused even fires to arise in the Margalla hills in the capital, Islamabad on May 31st. The eruption occurred at the viewpoint of Saidpur and village of Rumli and was not able to be completely put out until the report was launched. The heavy winds did not allow the fire to be entirely extinguished and had to appoint a number of eighty fire-fighters for this process.
An official shared that it might have been due to the human mistakes or a deliberate action but, it is clearly otherwise. Even though officers have been appointed to be at the positions permanently, yet, fires have erupted and that too at least ten, out of those five were informed to be extensive. On March 30th, the flames caused for the extinguishers to put it out through the help of a helicopter. Since, the area in the hills where fire was caught, had no access for the fire brigade to arrive, therefore, the department lagged in the extinguishing process.
Who knows what is to come in the years ahead, speculating from the current climate situation of the country and the world. It is at this time, unsure as what to speak regrading this matter but, one thing is for sure and that is the definite worsening of weather conditions due to rapid climate change and measures are necessary to stop rapid deforestation and emergency afforestation in the country.
