Al-Qalam 
Despite three attempts, army engineers have not been able to cause the waters of Lake Manchar to recede [Photo credit: DW]
By Al Qalam Reporter
South African Muslim charities have moved into high gear to provide hundreds of tons of food, tents and medicine to assist some of the 33-million Pakistanis who lost everything in the monsoon rainfall that claimed the lives of over 1100 people said to be Pakistan’s worst natural disaster.
With more than 20-million people homeless, South African Muslims have opened their hearts and pockets to assist in the catastrophe. Muslim charities have appealed for financial help to ease the plight of millions who are suffering on a scale never seen before.
One of the local groups working tirelessly in the South of Pakistan is Disaster Relief organization Gift of the Givers, which went into action – but the help required is massive and will need the assistance of people around the world to alleviate the shortages of water, food and shelter.
But there is another flood threat looming. Pakistan’s largest body of water, Lake Manchar which has swelled to hundreds of square kilometres, is threatening to break its banks due to the combined effects of monsoon rains and melting glaciers. Authorities are racing against time to lower water levels, fearing that a full-scale breach of its bank could flood entire cities.
Below is a photo essay compiled by Al-Qalam.
A resident in Karachi, Pakistan, throws out water from their home after many days of rain and a monsoon that has killed dozens over the past month. (Photo by Shahzaib Akber/EPA-EFE).
