The south of Pakistan, especially affected by the floods that have already caused the death of 1,033 people in the country, is preparing for a new deluge in the coming days, caused by the overflowing of the rivers. Fed by dozens of rivers and mountain streams that burst their banks after record rains and melting glaciers, the Indus, a river that flows through Sindh province in the south of the country, continues to rise.

“The Indus is in full flood,” confirms the person in charge of the imposing dam that dates back to colonial times, located near the city of Sukkur, where some 500,000 inhabitants live.

The valves were opened to handle a flow of more than 600,000 cubic meters per second, the official said. Authorities have warned that torrents of water are expected to hit Sindh province in the coming days, adding to the plight of millions of people already affected by the floods.

One in seven Pakistanis affected

More than 33 million people, one in seven Pakistanis, have been affected by the storms and almost a million homes have been destroyed or severely damaged, according to the government.

In Sindh province, tens of thousands of rural residents have taken refuge on elevated highways and railways. Near Sukkur, tents were erected for two kilometers to accommodate victims who continued to arrive by boat, laden with wooden beds and crockery, the only items they could salvage.

The water has already invaded the streets of Sukkur by seeping through the walls of buildings lining the main road from Bandar along the dam. “The city is already one meter below the level of the river,” said Water Resources Minister Syed Khursheed Shah.

In northern Pakistan, thousands of people were ordered to evacuate their homes on Saturday. Helicopters and rescuers continued on Sunday to shelter stragglers.

“Disaster”

The bad weather is comparable to that of 2010, when 2,000 people died and nearly a fifth of the country was submerged by the monsoon rains that fall between June and September each year.

The government declared a state of emergency on Friday and mobilized the army to deal with this “disaster of rare magnitude”, in the words of Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman.

The country is particularly vulnerable to climate change. It is in eighth position among the countries most threatened by extreme weather events, according to a study by the NGO Germanwatch. Additionally, corruption and poorly established urban planning programs have led to the construction of thousands of buildings in flood-prone areas.