A moderate rainfall of first spell of monsoon wrecked havoc in the city on Tuesday evening.
The port city plunged into darkness following the rain with lighting and thunderstorm. The K-Electric transmission and distribution system collapsed completely, leaving the citizens in miserable condition.
As per the reports of met office, the department’s observatory at the Old Airport area recorded 31 millimetres of rain till 8:20pm. He stated that earlier in the evening, Karachi’s Nazimabad area received 4.2 millimetres of rain.
The city is likely to receive occasional rain for one to two days, the met official said. “The forecast for Karachi during the next 24 hours is partly cloudy to cloudy with chances of rain and thunderstorm,” he said.
The residents of Karachi heaved a sigh of relief after a week-long wave of hot and humid weather. Both tracks of the busy roads of the city submerged with rain water. Many two-wheelers and four-wheelers jammed in the middle of roads, causing a traffic mess.
The residents who were willing to visit markets for Eid shopping stranded in the traffic jam. The rainwater accumulated in the markets causing problems for both the shop owners and the buyers. The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) staffers were seen on roads, draining the accumulated rainwater into the drains.
The first spell of light rain was reported at 5:30pm but the city received a heavy shower after Iftar. The first spell of monsoon turned the weather pleasant as many areas, including Nazimabad, Liaquatabad, North Nazimabad, Baldia, SITE Area, Maripur, Gulshan-e-Iqbal and Gulistan-e-Jauhar received the showers.
Talking to Pakistan Today, the K-Electric spokesman claimed that the work of restoration of power to the city is under way. He maintained that the electricity to the whole city will be restored before Sehri. Earlier, he claimed that no deliberate power breakdown was carried out by the utility before the rain.
The K-Electric has issued an advisory, urging the citizens to stay away from electric poles and not to use wet hand for door bells to avoid incidents of electrocution. The K-Electric transmission line of 132 KV tripped as a result of strong winds and heavy rainfall. The Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) officials maintained that the city may face shortage of water until the fault is repaired.
KMC Administrator Laeeq Ahmed directed all the departments — particularly municipal services, engineering, parks and health — to make necessary preparations and stand by available machinery to cope up with any emergency situation during monsoon.