JACOBABAD: Sara Khan, the administrator of a school for underprivileged girls in the southern Pakistani city of Jacobabad, watched in panic as some of her children fainted from the heat a few months ago. At one time in May, the city held the record for being the hottest on Earth.
Her classrooms are now flooded, many of the 200 pupils are homeless, and many are scrambling to take care of injured family members after torrential monsoon rains drowned vast portions of the nation.
Such extreme weather occurrences in a short period of time have wreaked havoc across the nation, killing hundreds of people, isolating towns, destroying homes and infrastructure, and raising questions about food and health security.Not even Jacobabad has been spared. When the temperature surpassed 50 degrees Celsius in May, the canal beds dried out and some locals passed out from heatstroke.
Even while flooding has subsided from its peak, portions of the city are still under water today.Homes in Khan’s neighbourhood to the east of the city have suffered significant damage. She claimed that she heard cries coming from a neighbor’s home on Thursday when their nine-year-old boy was killed after their roof fell due to water damage.
Given that they previously missed class due to the terrible summer heat wave, many of her students won’t be returning to school for several months.
