Pakistan: Floods - Jul 2011

From mid-August to early September 2011, monsoon rains and flooding throughout Sindh Province and five districts in Balochistan Province affected an estimated 5.8 million people, approximately 3 million of whom are ―highly affected, according to a joint U.N.–Government of Pakistan (GoP) rapid assessment. As of October 3, flooding had resulted in more than 400 deaths and injured more than 750 individuals, according to the Government of Pakistan (GoP) National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). (USAID, 3 Oct 2011)

The U.N. and GoP prioritized eight districts in Sindh Province: Badin, Mirpurkhas, Sanghar, Shaheed Benazir Abad, Tando Allahyar, Tando Mohammad Khan, Tharparkar, and Umerkot. (USAID, 11 Oct 2011)

More than 820,000 people fled to temporary settlements, where overcrowding and limited access to basic services increase the risk of disease spread. In addition, heavy rainfall caused water to breach river banks and irrigation canals, destroying up to 1.6 million houses and more than 2.1 million acres of agricultural land, according to the GoP National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). The 2011 floods occurred as Pakistanis continued to recover from the 2010 monsoon floods that affected approximately 18 million people countrywide. Families continue to rebuild homes and restore livelihoods more than a year after last year’s disaster—one of the worst in Pakistan’s history. (USAID, 19 Oct 2011).