Heavy rains have pounded the coastal regions of India and Pakistan, forcing thousands of residents from their homes as a cyclonic storm threatens to develop over the Arabian Sea by Friday. The Indian state of Gujarat has been particularly hard hit, with flooding submerging vehicles and roads, and displacing over 18,000 people.
Visuals from the region showed residents wading through waist-deep waters, struggling to navigate the submerged streets. Gujarat officials confirmed that at least 28 people have lost their lives due to rain-related incidents this week. Both Indian and Pakistani meteorological departments have issued warnings of further heavy rainfall and strong winds along the coast.
Prabhu Ram Soni, a resident of Jamnagar in Gujarat, described the dire situation: “There has been no electricity for the past two days. I have an eight-month-old daughter and an asthma patient, my mother, who is on oxygen support.”
Relief efforts are underway, with the Indian army assisting in the evacuation and support operations. The coastal areas of Gujarat were hit last year by Cyclone Biparjoy, which led to the evacuation of over 180,000 people and caused significant infrastructure damage.
Jamnagar, home to the world’s largest oil refinery complex owned by Reliance Industries, and the nearby Vadinar refinery, run by Nayara Energy and backed by Russian oil giant Rosneft, have also been impacted by the heavy rains. District collector B K Pandya confirmed that both refineries remain operational, with rescue efforts being prioritized in the affected areas.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned that a deep depression off Gujarat’s coast is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm by Friday. However, the storm is forecasted to move away from the Indian coast over the following days. Extremely heavy rainfall is expected in Gujarat’s Bharuch, Kutch, and Saurashtra districts on Friday.
In neighboring Pakistan, the weather department has advised fishermen to avoid venturing into the sea until Saturday. Flash floods triggered by rain have already caused power outages in Karachi. Authorities in Pakistan have also issued flash flood warnings for two districts in Sindh province, which is still recovering from the devastating floods of 2022 that submerged large parts of the country and severely impacted the economy.
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