Cyclone adds to Pakistan misery

[Novice]

Cyclone adds to Pakistan misery

Many people have been left with nowhere to live

Thousands of people have been evacuated from along Pakistan's Arabian Sea coast to escape a cyclone which is bringing more chaos to the south of the country. The navy is searching for a number of boats missing or sunk in the storms.
But officials say cyclone Yemyin is losing strength as it moves north-west. It is not expected to affect Karachi.
Heavy rain in Pakistan's biggest city in recent days has left at least 200 dead. Reports of damage to coastal areas near Karachi are still coming in.
Emergency
Cyclone Yemyin made landfall in Balochistan province at about 1100 local time (0600 GMT) on Tuesday, bringing rain and winds of up to 80mph (130 kph).
It was the worst storm I have seen in my life


Arman Sabir
Karachi resident



Your stories from Karachi
Human cost of storms


Meteorologists predicted widespread rain and winds with local flooding in coastal and southern Balochistan until late on Tuesday evening.
Heavy flooding has been reported in and around the town of Pasni, about 400km (250 miles) west of Karachi, and water has also washed away part of the coastal highway linking southern Balochistan with the rest of the country.
Fishermen say more than 200 fishing boats anchored along the coast have been destroyed in the storms.
Warnings of coastal flooding have prompted many people to leave their homes.


The mayor of the port of Gwadar said most of its 120,000 residents had moved to higher ground.
"We have imposed an emergency in the district and asked the army and other forces to be on alert," Mayor Abdul Ghaffar Hoth told the Associated Press news agency.
Unconfirmed reports say a number of Hindu pilgrims may have been killed in the heavy rains in Lasbella district as they travelled to a shrine.
Out to sea, Pakistan Navy vessels and helicopters are searching for dozens of people reported missing in the storms.
A navy spokesman said at least one fishing trawler had sunk and its 12 crew members had been rescued by a navy vessel.
Destruction
Days of heavy rain in southern India and Pakistan have left several hundred people dead.



In pictures: Karachi rain


Much of Karachi, which has been worst hit by the weather, is still without power and water.
Officials have been evacuating residents from shanty towns in the city, where badly-built homes collapsed or were washed away by the torrential rain.
More than 140 have been killed in the rains in India, where people are also being moved from low-lying areas with more flooding forecast in many areas.
There have also been a number of deaths in Afghanistan.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6240568.stm