Heatstroke kills at least 22 people in Pakistan

As extreme weather conditions take hold of various parts of Pakistan, health officials in Islamabad and Mardan have confirmed Monday that at least 22 people have died in the two cities after suffering from heatstroke.

18 people died due to sunstroke in Mardan on June 24 (Saturday), Mardan Medical Complex chief Dr Tariq Mehmood said, adding that most victims of heatstroke were women over 50.

Moreover, according to officials, at least four people died of heatstroke in Islamabad in the same period.

Several cities across the country experienced sweltering weather last week, with unannounced electricity loadshedding compounding the miseries of the masses.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) has denied reports of any death at the health facility due to extreme heat, saying the district administration had brought four people dead, who probably died due to heatstroke.

They said all possible assistance was being provided to facilitate patients and their attendants at the healthcare facility.

"At least four people were brought dead at the hospital's emergency by the district administration on Saturday, who probably died due to heatstroke during extreme heatwave-like conditions.

"We have complete evidence that these people were not alive when they were brought to the health facility," Dr Mubashir Daha, a spokesman for the PIMS, told The News.

He claimed that the hospital had received over a dozen heatstroke patients last week from different areas of Islamabad; however, all were treated and discharged when their conditions improved.

In response to a query, he said nine air-conditioning units had been installed at the old emergency building of PIMS on Saturday and efforts were being made to get the central cooling system functional as early as possible.

Heatwave warning

Last week, Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) warned that heatwave-like conditions would persist in most parts of the country from June 20-24 due to the high pressure in the upper atmosphere.

"Temperatures are likely to increase gradually in most parts of the country during the period due to the presence of high pressure in the upper atmosphere the day," it had said.

The PMD had stated that daytime temperatures were likely to remain 4-6°C above normal in upper and central Punjab, Islamabad, upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir and 2-4°C above normal in Sindh, South Punjab and parts of Balochistan.

The weather department had said that power and water demands would increase in the coming days due to the temperature rise and advised citizens to ensure judicious use of water in all aspects of life.