An estimated 1,200 people have been killed in India, Bangladesh and Nepal and millions have been left homeless following the worst flooding disaster to
have hit the region in years.
Tens of thousands of villages have been cut off by flooding with many people having been deprived of food and clean water for days.
Over 500 people have died in the eastern Indian state of Bihar while many thousands seeking shelter in relief camps.
Bihar’s economy depends on agricultural farming and it is feared once the flood is over many people will find themselves both homeless and without
employment.
In the northern state of Uttar Pradesh more than 100 people have died with an estimated 2.5 million people affected by the deluge.
In Mumbai, the water rose above five feet in some parts of the city and many low lying areas were evacuated with great difficulty.
In Bangladesh, at least 134 people have died as the waters flooded their communities. It is estimated that one third of the country was inundated.
Huge amounts of agricultural land have been washed away which will cause huge economic crises in a country that is largely dependent on agricultural
produce for its GDP.
In Nepal, 150 people have been killed and an estimated 90,000 homes have been destroyed in what the UN has called the worst flooding incident in the
country in a decade.
Today Monsoon rain has left at least eight people dead in flood-related incidents in the Pakistan’s largest city Karachi, officials said. Our
Liaquatabad, Karachi based officer Luke described the situation. He said:
“The deluge has drowned the vehicles in our streets so high is the flooding. It seems like a nightmare just before the Muslim celebration of Eid ul Adha. Compounded by poor infrastructure and sloppy civil engineering we are in a real mess.
It will take days for the water to dissipate by which time waterborne diseases such as typhoid and dengue fever will have set in and will take more lives. People here need food, water and medical provisions those of us living on higher floors have opened our homes to residents on lower floors. But we are stranded here.”
The heavy downpour in Karachi left the city in turmoil with people in many places wading through waist-high water. Image taken by Luke.
After a weather warning from Pakistan’s meteorological department predicted severe flooding for at least three more days, schools and many businesses were
forced to shut down. Areas in the East of Punjab, Southwest Baluchistan and Azad Kashmir are expected to be hit by the rising waters over the course of
the next three days.
In the capital city of Islamabad emergency services were already working to help those affected by the rains with Pakistan’s largest Edhi ambulance
service reporting that they had transported the bodies of eight people to hospital. Victims had been killed by collapsing buildings or had been electrocuted.
The floods come shortly after the US was hit by Hurricane Harvey during a decade in which the US has had the two worst flood attacks in it’s recorded
history.
Already environmentalists have posited that the floods are the result of climate change. Suggesting that man’s interaction with the earth have caused the
great devastation. Whereas Some Christian groups are warning people that the upsurge in adverse weather conditions is a sign of an approaching Armageddon.
Wilson Chowdhry, Chairman of the British Pakistani Christian Association, said:
“During the last decade the nations of Pakistan and India have been hit with some of the worst floods in their history. The ferocity and scale of flooding is increasing with thousands of lives losts almost every year.
“The suffering survivors of this latest flood most of whom will already be deprived, will find themselves without homes, food and clean water and the international community simply must intervene to save so many innocent lives. Besides the floods have not yet ended and the death count and numbers of those affected will inevitablely increase.
“Our teams in Pakistan and India will prioritize flood relief for the next few weeks and we will be providing assistance wherever we can. Please help us improve the lives of so many beleaguered victims through your prayer and donations.”
British Asian Christian Association have initiated a disaster recovery appeal to assist the millions of people affected in Pakistan and India. Our teams are already visiting affected regions to assess how we can help. We intend to provide clean water filtration units, food and medical supplies and will be initiating medical camps in the worst hit areas. We will also help with rebuilding projects in the most deprived communities replacing mud homes for brick ones where we can. If you would like to donate towards our emergency appeal. Please do so by clicking (here)
BPCA has previously provided medical camps for victims of flooding (click here). We are often the first to reach Christian communities with food and clean water and do not discriminate by faith (click here). We also uncoverd a diabolical attempt by many Mulsim charities in Pakistan who tried to force Christians to renouce their faith and adopt Islam to obtain aid (click here). We have also rebuilt mud homes in a Christian community with deep foundations, a plinth and brick walla to protect them from being washed away in further floods (click here)