Breakdown at Dhabeji pumping station leaves several areas without water for six days
The Judicial Commission on Saturday directed the Managing Director of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) to issue show cause notices to ghost employees of the water department’s laboratories. PHOTO: EXPRESS
KARACHI:
The teeming metropolis of more than 30 million people is in the grip of a grueling water crisis, with supplies remaining suspended in several neighborhoods for the past six days, making life more difficult in the scorching heat of an unforgiving summer.
The crisis began after a major power outage on April 27 at the Dhabeji pumping station, which led to the rupture of three main water transmission pipes. Although the repair work on line No. 5 has been completed, the restoration work on lines No. 1 and 2 continues, even after six days.
Due to the disruptions, water supply was suspended in several areas of the city including Korangi, Landhi, Gulistan-e-Jauhar, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Liaquatabad, PIB Colony, Nazimabad, Malir, Shah Faisal Colony and Chanesar Goth, among others.
Learn more: A serious water supply crisis threatens the city
Sources in the Karachi Water and Sanitation Corporation said that due to the breakdown and ongoing repair works, seven pumping stations of the Dhabeji facility were currently non-operational, leading to a massive deficit in water supply for the metropolis.
They added that efforts were underway to complete the repair work, with a possibility of restoration by Sunday. However, they warned that normal water supply should resume 24 hours after the repairs are completed.
Sources further warned that water supply disruptions were likely to continue in the city for the next three to four days, worsening the situation for already affected residents.
