KARACHI: The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has forecast the possibility of light drizzle or rain in Karachi today with likelihood of some relief to the ongoing humid spell.
According to the PMD, the weather in the city over the next 24 hours is expected to remain humid with partly cloudy skies. The maximum temperature is likely to hover between 34 degrees Celsius and 36°C, while the minimum temperature was recorded at 29.7°C early this morning.
Humidity levels remain high at 75% whereas a 10 kilometres per hour sea breeze is blowing — helping slightly to mitigate the humid conditions.
The much-needed change in weather comes after the port city, whose residents have been reeling from hot weather for days, received its first downpour on Friday bringing a noticeable drop in feels-like temperature.
Since then the metropolis has witnessed light rain and drizzle on multiple occasions.
Separately, the Met Office has also issued an advisory regarding the onset of a widespread monsoon spell across various regions of the country starting from June 25, warning of potential flash floods, urban inundation, landslides, and other rain-related hazards.
Moist currents from the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal have already begun to penetrate the upper and central parts of Pakistan and are likely to intensify over the next couple of days, according to the weather forecasting department.
A strong westerly wave is expected to approach the northern regions on June 25 and may gain significance by June 26, resulting in heavy rainfall activity across most provinces and territories.
The heavy to very heavy rains may trigger flash floods in local streams and nullahs particularly in Murree, Galliyat, Mansehra, Kohistan, Dir, Swat, Shangla, Nowshera, Swabi, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, hill torrents of Dera Ghazi Khan, northeast Punjab, and Kashmir between June 26 and July 1.
The downpours may also cause urban flooding in low-lying areas of Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Lahore, Sialkot, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Nowshera, and Peshawar during the same period, while similar conditions could affect Hyderabad and Karachi between June 26 and June 28.
The continuous wet spell poses the risk of landslides that may result in road closures in vulnerable hilly areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Murree, Galliyat, Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan.
In addition, heavy rainfall combined with windstorms and lightning could disrupt daily life and cause damage to weak structures such as Kacha houses, electric poles, billboards, vehicles, and solar panels.
