SUI, DERA BUGTI: The district administration in Dera Bugti has sprung into action following criticism over the flooding in the area, with the Balochistan Levies, the local paramilitary force, tasked with overseeing the extraction of flood water using heavy machinery in Sui.

Following the first monsoon rain of the season, parts of the Dera Bugti district in Balochistan were flooded overnight with rainwater accumulated in streets, markets, and canals.

The rain began around midnight Friday (yesterday) which the locals in the drought-hit district welcomed as a respite.

While the weather did turn pleasant, the situation spiralled out of control particularly in the city of Sui, home to Pakistan’s most important gas fields.

The district administration was slow to react, with minimal action until the issue was reported on mainstream media.

Residents were forced to use pails to remove water that entered shops and homes, with stormdrais flooded. In some places, the water remains knee high.

Shopkeepers said they didn’t know about the state of their inventories that were now inaccessible due to their shops being flooded.

In some parts of the city, the water carried off knickknacks and the water drums outside people’s homes. Traffic was also disrupted as only cars could be used for travel. Motorcycles and donkey-carts, popular modes of transport in the area, could not be used due to the strong water flow.

Locals said municipal authorities had fail to extract water from flooded areas.