The Meteorological Department has issued a clarification that no strong rains are due in Karachi, rumours of which had spread a day earlier.

An “alert” was issued on Tuesday, and covered by the Pakistani media, stating that Karachi would experience the strongest rains since 2019.

However, while speaking to Aaj News on Wednesday, Chief Meteorologist Sardar Sarfraz denied issuing any such alert.

“There will be scattered rainfall in Karachi and heavy rains are expected in parts of southern Balochistan,” he said. But there is no such possibility of urban flooding in Karachi.

The misinformation was that a new westerly wind system has entered the Arabian Sea and would hit Karachi in the next few days.

Weather update:

Met office informed that a fresh westerly wave is likely to enter southern Balochistan from tomorrow. Under its influence; scattered dust-thunderstorm/rain with few moderate to isolated heavy falls and hailstorms are likely to occur in Dadu, Jamshoro, Qambar Shahdadkot, Larkana, Jacobabad, Shikarpur, Kashmore, Sukkur, Ghotki, Khairpur, Naushahro Feroz, Shaheed Benazirabad, Sanghar, Matiari, T.M Khan, T.A Yar, Hyderabad, Mirpur Khas, Umerkot, Tharparker, Badin, Thatta, Sujawal and Karachi division during April 28 to May 01 with occasional gaps.

Heavy falls may generate water logging in low-lying areas of Qambar Shahdadkot, Dadu, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, Sanghar, Matiari, and Badin districts.

Moreover, strong winds may cause damage to loose and vulnerable structures.

Sun halo effect

A sun halo is visible in the Karachi sky, independent weather analyst, Jawad Memon said on Tuesday. It occurs when there is instability in the upper atmosphere. The high humidity forms ice crystals, when light rays pass through the ice crystals it forms sun halos.

The weather analyst said that this is also a very powerful natural indicator of upcoming turbulent weather like storms. “A sun halo reflects the change in weather and indicates that a storm is coming very soon,” he said.

An earlier forecast

Earlier, the system of winds was forecast to enter Pakistan on March 12. It primarily brought heavy rainfall in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

Under the influence of these systems, Memon had said, temperatures in Sindh rose from March 12 to March 17. Then, at the beginning of April, it brought two more wind systems, leading to heavy rain across Pakistan.

Karachi was expected to receive heavy rainfall from March 18. Memon had described the rain expectation as ‘above normal’.

In the rest of the country, the back-to-back wind systems will bring danger for wheat crops which are set to be harvested in the months of March and April. If the rains turn to hailstorms, harvests could seriously be affected.

Pakistan was faced with floods of historic proportions last year when large portions of Sindh and Balochistan were submerged under water. While the waters took their time to recede, damage to infrastructure has still not been completely fixed as diseases continue to spread. Pakistan had to deal with the catastrophe in addition to an ailing economy.