In mid-June 2022 Pakistan encountered its most serious flood disaster in a century in a monsoon season that brought calamities to the Pakistani people. According to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), at least one third of the country's land was submerged and about 33 million people became homeless, with 1,200 dead and more than 495,000 houses damaged because of the heavy rain.
In Sukkur, South Pakistan's Sindh Region, a great number of houses were submerged by the flood and villagers were left short of sources of food. Employees at the Peshawar-Karachi Motorway (PKM) project of China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) took action as soon as they heard of the situation. They purchased a large amount of rice, grain and oil and sugar, as well as urgently needed supplies, and delivered them to nearly 800 victims near the project site for free, doing their part to relieve the increasingly evident food shortages.
A view of the donated food supplies to the flood victims [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
The flood also caused the spread of various kinds of diseases like diarrhea, skin and respiratory tract infections, malaria and dengue, which all urgently called for medical response. The PKM project team took action and purchased about 500 boxes of targeted medicine while organized medical teams carried out voluntary clinical tours in nearby villages. Employees at the PKM project also gave out free treatment and medicine and helped villagers learn about post-disaster disease prevention to avoid infection and guarantee health and food security after the flooding.
Voluntary clinical tours are carried out at the flood-affected areas. [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
CSCEC's representative office in Pakistan also donated 600,000 rupees (about $2,600) for disaster relief through the All-Pakistan Chinese Enterprises' Association to support the government's fighting against the flood.
When the disaster first burst out, the flood submerged villages and destroyed roads. Sindh, a region seriously afflicted by the flood, welcomed a 25-member rescue team from the PKM project. The team took 11 sets of machinery including car loaders, dumpers and excavators as well as water pumps, to help villagers repair the roads and dredge the flood water. After several days of work, 30-kilometers of road destroyed by the flood in four villages re-opened to traffic, ensuring smooth disaster relief channels. The PKM project also arranged management personnel to remain on site for risk inspection of dangerous areas and to help villagers escape impending dangers.
Villager Amanullah was impressed by the PKM disaster relief team's efforts and said "Thank you CSCEC for offering mechanical equipment to the village to dredge the flood water and clean the roads. Thanks to all those people who helped us through the hardship."
Disaster shows no mercy, but humans do. The team of the PKM project gave full play to its role and guaranteed smooth and unimpeded highways during the flood, which ensured valuable relief channels for the Pakistani people. It did its best to support local anti-flood and disaster relief actions to help Pakistanis' safeguarding their homes.
(Executive editor: Li Zhiyong)
