A heavy downpour in the last twenty-four hours has caused further flooding in Sindh in southern Pakistan as monsoon rains affect 4.9 million. Flooding in Baluchistan is causing further misery.
In some of the worst affected areas of Sindh, 166mm of rain fell in a day. Over one million houses have been damaged so far.
Floods in Pakistan in the summer of 2010 were the worst in 80 years.
One-fifth of the country lay underwater, 18 million people struggled to find food and water and to keep a roof over their heads. Sindh was one of the worst affected parts of the country.
Caritas Pakistan’s National Coordinator for disaster Management Eric Dayal said earlier by phone that the current flooding in Sindh was almost the same in severity as last year.
Badin escaped flooding last year, but has been particularly badly hit in 2011. The district administration has set up 142 relief camps at different points to accommodate more than 40,000 displaced people.
Caritas responded last year with food, shelter and medical help. Caritas spent over US$10.6 million (7.5 million euro) in the first five months alone.
UPDATE: Caritas Pakistan was on the ground since the onset of the emergency. Caritas Pakistan response is focusing on Badin and Tatha in Sindh, Kasur, Mian Chanon, Ranjanpur and Bahwalpur in Punjab.
The diocese of Hyderabad has already distributed 400 tents and 400 food packages. The diocese of Lahore has distributed food packages and has conducted medical camps in Kasur; 500 patients have been treated so far while a total of 2,000 patients have visited the medical camps organised by Caritas Pakistan.
The diocese of Multan has distributed 300 tents and food packages.
Caritas Internationalis Secretary General Michel Roy is travelling to Pakistan on 17 September for one year anniversary commemorations of the 2010 flooding.