Winds are expected to blow at 20 to 25 kilometers per hour during the day, the Met Office predicts.
- Parts of different arteries are still blocked.
- Humidity is recorded at 92% in the port city.
- Several areas experienced power outages that lasted for hours.
KARACHI: Heavy downpour lashed Karachi for the second day on Sunday as many parts of the port city are still submerged under rainwater.
Areas that experienced heavy to moderate rain on the second day include North Karachi, Superhighway, Buffer Zone, Nagan Chowrangi, Saadi Town, North Naziabad, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, New MA Jinnah Road, Nazimabad, II Chundrigar Road, Saddar, Shah Faisal. Scheme 33 and other areas on Sunday morning.
The Meteorological Office said nimbus clouds persisted in the central and northern areas of the city, which received intermittent rain.
“The series of rains may continue intermittently until the afternoon,” the meteorological department said, adding that it was after 40 years that the city witnessed such rains in February.
Earlier today, the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) forecast that the weather in Karachi would remain cloudy with several parts of the metropolis likely to receive intermittent rain.
The current temperature in the metropolis is 19.9 degrees Celsius, while winds blowing from the northeast at a speed of 8 kilometers per hour, reported the PMD. Winds are expected to blow at 20 to 25 kilometers per hour during the day.
According to the Meteorological Office, the humidity in the megalopolis is 92%.
Several areas of the city, including major arteries, remain blocked because rainwater has not yet been drained. This includes Qayyumabad Chowrangi, II Chundrigar Road, Burns Road, Arts Council, Korangi Industrial Area Road from Godown Chowrangi to Chamra Chowrangi, Shah Faisal Colony area near Shama Center. Because of this, people have to take long routes to reach their destinations.
Whereas rainwater has been drained from Safoora Chowrangi, Gurumandir, Hassan Square and Essa Nagri.
Several areas experienced power outages lasting hours due to heavy rain. Power supply to Block 8 of Gulistan-e-Johar and Jamshed Road has been suspended since Saturday night.
Heavy rain, accompanied by thunder and lightning on Saturday night, wreaked havoc in parts of Karachi as rainwater mixed with sewage overflowing from clogged lines entered homes and hospitals in the port city.
The areas that received showers included Baldi Town, Orangi Town, North Karachi, Surjani Town, Gulshan-e-Maymar, Korangi, Landhi, DHA, Shah Faisal Colony, Malir, Orangi Town, Bahria Town, Saddar, North Nazimabad, Tower, Liaquatabad and Nazimabad.
In the wake of the rain, the main arteries of the megacity were submerged by rainwater and commuters were trapped in their vehicles as the city administration had not taken any measures to deal with the rain, despite that the PMD had predicted heavy rain the previous day.
Parts of the city's main artery, Sharea Faisal, were completely submerged by water and dozens of cars broke down, further disrupting traffic movement on Saturday night.
When rainwater entered the Drigh Road underpass and could not be drained for a long period, chaos ensued in Sharea Faisal.
No emergency response from the city administration seemed as if the rain had taken them by surprise and they were unprepared.
The Gizri underpass was also flooded with rainwater and was closed to traffic.
Nagan Chowrangi, Five Star Chowrangi, Disco Mor and Surjani Town of Central District were also completely inundated by rainwater.
In some areas, rainwater also entered houses. In the Eastern District, the university road under construction was completely flooded by rainwater, paralyzing traffic for hours.
Many people returning from their offices were stuck on the roads for hours before they could reach their homes.
A statement issued by Karachi Mayor's Official Murtaza Wahab said drainage work began in areas after rains subsided.
The mayor ordered relevant municipal officials to ensure that rainwater did not accumulate in any area.
Commuters faced problems due to pooled water mixed with sewage overflowing from clogged lines on most roads including MA Jinnah Road and II Chundrigar Road.
With the first drop of rain, different parts of the port city, including North Nazimabad, North Karachi, Korangi, Gulistan-e-Johar and its suburban areas, went dark due to a power cut.
Shara-e-Faisal suffers the highest rainfall
According to statistics released by the PMD, the highest rainfall was recorded at 75 millimeters in Shara-e-Faisal in the last 24 hours, followed by Malir and Surjani Town at 64 and 63.8 millimeters respectively.
Keamari received 55 millimeters of rain, Quaidabad 52, airport area 51, Gulshan-e-Hadeed 50, Masroor Base 47.2, Jinnah Terminal 42 and Saad Town 37.6 millimeters.
While rainfall in North Karachi was recorded 33.6 millimeters, 30 millimeters in University Road, 23.8 in Gulshan-e-Meymar, 23.5 in Nazimabad and 15 in Korangi.
