• Lyari, Malir rivers swell to capacity as rainwater from Kirthar range flows in
• 400 evacuated after localities near Lyari, Malir river banks and M-9 motorway inundated
• Karachi-bound van swept away in flash flood on motorway, four bodies found
• Parts of new Hub Canal, Malir Expressway suffer damage
• Met Office says chances of more rain are ‘almost non-existent’
• Records 158mm maximum rainfall in Surjani Town over three days

KARACHI: Five people were killed and hundreds rescued as water from hill torrents and continuous downpour swelled the Lyari and Malir rivers to what many called as unprecedented levels, wreaking havoc on citizens and civic infrastructure, especially in low-lying areas, on Wednesday.

Although almost every city area received non-stop light to moderate showers from Tuesday to Wednesday afternoon, it was heavy rain in the Kirthar mountain range that brought miseries on Karachi and its citizens particularly those living in Gadap Town, Scheme 33 and areas along the M-9 motorway.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah also said that the recent flooding in the Malir and Lyari rivers in Karachi was actually the result of heavy rains in other areas of Balochistan and Sindh, and not just in Karachi.

However, the weather system that caused rains in the province has moved away from Karachi to Balochistan and Met officials said although it is still in the form of a depression, the chances of more rain in Sindh are almost non-existent.

According to the Met Office, the maximum rain over the past three days (from Monday till Wednesday evening) was recorded in Surjani Town 158mm, followed by Gulshan-i-Maymar 127mm, Korangi 111mm, DHA Phase II 107mm, Gulshan-i-Hadeed 100mm, North Karachi 94.4mm, Keamari 82mm, PAF Faisal Base 75mm, Met Complex (University Road) 71mm, Old Airport 70.3mm, Saadi Town 68mm, Nazimabad (Paposh Nagar) 65.5mm, PAF Masroor Base 65mm, Orangi Town 59.2mm and Jinnah Terminal 44.2.

The area of DHA Phase VII saw 32.6mm rainfall on Wednesday.

‘A harrowing night’

Residents of housing societies in the Scheme 33 and surrounding areas, as well as those living in shanties along the banks of the Malir and Lyari rivers, spent a harrowing night as floodwaters from the M-9 motorway inundated their neighbourhoods and homes, leaving many in fear and uncertainty.

Several houses built in the areas along the banks of the Lyari and Malir rivers were submerged while many residents who were trapped in their homes and moved to higher ground on their own as rescue and relief efforts remained limited.

Large-scale rescue and relief operations were carried out by charities like Edhi Foundation, Rescue 1122, provincial disaster management authority, army, navy and police personnel and other agencies.

Saad Edhi of the Edhi Foundation said he was frequently receiving complaints / information from citizens about inundation of their homes and localities. He said he had no option but to told them that draining rainwater was not their responsibility.

The downpour also brought widespread disruption to other parts of the city as localities including North Karachi’s Do Minute Chowrangi, Nagan Chowrangi, Sharah-i-Pakistan, Jail Chowrangi, Liaquatabad, Buffer Zone, Anda Mor, Qalandaria Chowk, Five Star Chowrangi, KDA Chowrangi, Essa Nagri, Sir Shah Suleman Road, Sharea Faisal, and PECHS were all severely waterlogged, causing extensive hardship for residents.

While the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation (KWSC) and Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) managed to keep major arteries largely functional during the day, rainwater remained accumulated in several key areas within the administrative jurisdiction of town administrations and cantonment boards till late at night.

400 rescued in city: Sharjeel

According to Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon, rescue teams evacuated more than 400 people from Sohrab Goth, Laasi Goth, Gadap, Machhar Colony, Saadi Garden, Korangi Causeway, Nishtar Basti and other areas.

Hyderabad-bound vehicular traffic on the M-9 motorway was suspended on Tuesday night after water from Thado Dam overflowed. Mr Memon said several vehicles had been trapped on the submerged road, and the rescue teams moved 172 people and 23 vehicles to safety.

In a statement, he said all civic bodies in cooperation with Pakistan Army engineers worked hard to drain the rainwater, while a special operation was carried out near Malir Cantonment at 3am to divert water toward Thadho Dam.

Bodies of four drowned in flash flood found

On Wednesday, bodies of four people drowned in a rainwater-filled stream was recovered.

A spokesperson for the Edhi Foundation said that a Suzuki Hi-roof carrying some passengers towards Karachi had fallen in Konk Naddi in Gadap Town on Tuesday night.

He said some seven people drowned in the incident, but bodies of only four victims were found by Wednesday evening. He identified the victim as Nabu Gulab, 60, her husband Gulab, 60, and their son Raja Gulab, 45. The fourth victim was identified as Javed Shah, 45.

Teenager electrocuted

A teenage boy died from electrocution in North Nazimabad on Wednesday.

Police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed told Dawn that the body of 18-year-old Ahmed Qadir was brought to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital from Block C. She said that the victim suffered an electric shock and died.

Damage to Hub Canal, ‘under-construction’ Malir Expressway

The recently launched Hub Canal, a gas pipeline running above it and an under-construction patch of the Malir Expressway, also known as Shahrah-i-Bhutto, also collapsed due to the rain.

Officials said that the water flow from the Northern Bypass impacted the Hub canal, damaging a 20-meter section as well as the gas line above it.

They said that work to repair the canal and line had already started.

Footage went viral on social media showed a portion of the Malir Expressway collapsed due to floodwater in the Malir river.

However, the chief minister said told a private news channel on Wednesday evening that a crack appeared on the under-construction Shahrah-i-Bhutto due to water from the Malir river, but it was not a major threat. He added that immediate repair and pitching work had started, and citizens shouldn’t worry.

Also on Wednesday, the traffic police stopped the movement of heavy traffic towards the M-9 motorway via district Central and Sohrab Goth, in view of the threat of rainwater entering the city via the Northern Bypass due to ongoing heavy rains in Balochistan.

Schools open today

While all educational institutions remained closed in the city on Wednesday, there will be no school holiday on Thursday (today) in view of the weather clearing up as the rain system has weakened.

The city commissioner had issued a notification late on Tuesday night about the closure of educational institutions on Wednesday.

“It is so strange that the government, despite having information about the weather, announces its decision of school closure so late like they did on Tuesday. The announcement came around midnight,” Private Schools Management Association chairman Syed Danish-Uz-Zaman said.

“It is a pity as parents are left wondering whether to send the children to school or not the next day while the school staff and managements are also left confused. On Tuesday, private schools had to take the decision themselves. We announced around 10pm while the commissioner of Karachi’s notification came after midnight,” he said.

All Sindh Private Schools and Colleges Association chairman Haider Ali said that all private schools and colleges would remain open as usual on Thursday in Karachi after the weather cleared and the rain system weakened. — Imtiaz Ali, Imran Ayub, Faiza Ilyas and Shazia Hasan contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, September 11th, 2025