Karachi heat wave death toll rises despite cooler temperatures

The death toll from a deadly heat wave continued to rise Friday despite cooler temperatures after the resumption of breeze from the Arabian Sea.

Heatstroke and dehydration claimed 35 more lives in the metropolis since Thursday night, doctors said, raising the death toll to 1,083 since last weekend when scorching heat gripped the city.

After days of temperatures hovering at highs in the mid-40s Celsius (around 110 Fahrenheit), sea breezes and cloud cover have brought respite to the port city in the last few days.

According to Jinnah Post-Graduate Medical Centre (JPMC) spokesman Dr Javed Jamali, nine more patients have died at the hospital since last night.

Nine more patients lost their lives at different hospital of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), while 14 died at the Civil Hospital.

One patient lost his life at the Liaquat National Hospital, raising the number of total deaths from the heat wave to 1,083.

Blasting summer heat is not unusual in Pakistan, and some parts of the country regularly experience temperatures higher than those seen in Karachi this week, without serious loss of life. But this year’s heatwave has coincided with the start of the Islamic fasting month of Ramzan, during which millions abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset.

The majority of the deaths in Karachi have been among the poor and manual labourers who work outdoors, prompting clerics to urge those at risk of heatstroke not to fast.

The situation has not been helped by power cuts, a regular feature of life in Pakistan, which have stopped fans and air conditioners from working.

Electricity shortages have crippled the water supply system in Karachi, hampering the pumping of millions of gallons of water to consumers, the state-run water utility said.