Meanwhile, Pakistan continues to face the impacts of a heartbreaking humanitarian crisis. Floodwaters have swept away families, with more than 170 deaths reported—about half of those victims were children. Since late June, extreme heat, wildfires, floods and storms in 13 states have killed at least 85 kids. This tragedy is a warning of our nation’s growing vulnerability as the climate crisis has intensified. The floods, exacerbated by persistent heatwaves earlier this year, have wreaked havoc in Punjab province, the country’s most populous region.
The government also recently announced a state of emergency in multiple districts throughout Punjab in response to the flooding waters. In neighboring Rawalpindi, the military has been called in to help with rescue work and control the aftermath of this disaster. Torrential rains have caused widespread destruction across the state over the last 24 hours. The human toll is staggering, with at least 54 confirmed deaths as residential buildings collapse and key infrastructure, such as emergency-access roads, are suddenly obliterated.
Flood relief efforts are just getting started and in a swing! To reach people with food, clean water, medication and temporary shelter, seven camps have been established in southern Pakistan. Still, the scope of this disaster is mind numbing. The floodwaters have washed away entire towns. Consequently, tens of thousands no longer have access to food and clean water. The outlook for the nation’s children is extremely dire. Twenty-three million still don’t have access to safe drinking water, a year later, after similar flooding inundated other parts of the state.
Pakistan has been on the front lines of the human-induced climate crisis for decades. In 2022, the country endured the most disastrous floods in its history. A third of its territory was underwater, followed by more than 1,000 fatalities from this terrible catastrophe. As an even heavier downpour is due to strike the region on Friday, fears are intensifying that flooding this year may exceed last year’s catastrophe.
This is not ‘bad weather’ – it’s a symptom of an accelerating climate crisis. Pakistan’s climate minister, Sherry Rehman, used the moment to call for combat climate emergency with more coordinated efforts. How many more wake-up calls do we need before we start building genuine resilience and preparedness into our cities?” she asked.
In the interim, though, impacted residents like Mahar Hammad are left in despair over their permanent loss. “I’ve had huge losses. I was selling vegetables at the farmers’ market and everything was under water. I’m no big-wig, I’m just an average working guy. I work the whole day just to make 1,000 rupees ($4) and now I am suffering big losses,” he said ruefully.
These are the routes that Pakistan needs to follow even as it confronts immediate challenges from the floods. At the same time, federal leaders need to address the inequities that climate change exacerbates for the nation’s most vulnerable populations.
