Islamabad:
Thousands of Pakistanis streamed back to the historic southern city of Thatta on Monday after authorities managed to hold off floodwaters that threatened to inundate it, a rare piece of
good news after a month of devastation in the country.
But thousands of others from neighbouring towns that were not so lucky complained about the shortage of food and water in Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps.
Authorities said they were trying to provide food and shelter to the hundreds of thousands of people in camps.
But as in other areas of the country, the scale of the disaster has overwhelmed both local capacity and the international partners who have stepped into help.
Authorities struggled to save Thatta on Sunday, building new levees with clay and stone across a major road to hold back floodwaters that inundated the nearby town of Sujawal.
Many of Sujawal's 250-thousand residents had already fled, but the water damaged houses, schools and other buildings in the town.
A majority of Thatta's 350-thousand residents had also fled in recent days to avoid the floods and began to return to the city now that the danger has passed.
Water levels are beginning to drop in Sindh province as the floodwaters make their way down the Indus River into the Arabian Sea, said on official.
But even after the floodwaters recede, Pakistan will be left with a massive relief and reconstruction effort that will cost billions of dollars and likely take years.
Meanwhile, the head of UNICEF, the UN's children's agency, visited a camp for victims of
Pakistan's flooding Charsadda on Monday, where he spoke on the need to prevent an outbreak of disease amongst IDPs.
good news after a month of devastation in the country.
But thousands of others from neighbouring towns that were not so lucky complained about the shortage of food and water in Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps.
Authorities said they were trying to provide food and shelter to the hundreds of thousands of people in camps.
But as in other areas of the country, the scale of the disaster has overwhelmed both local capacity and the international partners who have stepped into help.
Authorities struggled to save Thatta on Sunday, building new levees with clay and stone across a major road to hold back floodwaters that inundated the nearby town of Sujawal.
Many of Sujawal's 250-thousand residents had already fled, but the water damaged houses, schools and other buildings in the town.
A majority of Thatta's 350-thousand residents had also fled in recent days to avoid the floods and began to return to the city now that the danger has passed.
Water levels are beginning to drop in Sindh province as the floodwaters make their way down the Indus River into the Arabian Sea, said on official.
But even after the floodwaters recede, Pakistan will be left with a massive relief and reconstruction effort that will cost billions of dollars and likely take years.
Meanwhile, the head of UNICEF, the UN's children's agency, visited a camp for victims of
Pakistan's flooding Charsadda on Monday, where he spoke on the need to prevent an outbreak of disease amongst IDPs.
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