Pakistan in grip of searing weather, 40-plus temperatures in several parts

KARACHI: The weather will remain very hot on Sunday in Sindh, eastern Balochistan and plains of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while hot and dry in most parts of the country, ARY News reported.

According to Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), the mercury hit 41 ºC in Larkana, Jacobabad in Sindh and Bahawalpur in southern Punjab this morning.

The temperature recorded 38 ºC in Bhakkar, Faisalabad and Jhang at 10:00 AM in the morning.

The met office has also forecast 44 ºC temperature in Lahore, 41 ºC in Peshawar and 40 ºC in Islamabad.

Continental air is prevailing over most parts of the country. Weather remained hot and dry in most parts of the country on Saturday, while very hot in central and southern Punjab, eastern Balochistan, Sindh and plain areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, weather office said.

However, dust-thunderstorm and rain occurred at isolated places in Malakand, Gujranwala divisions & Gilgit-Baltistan.

Pakistan Meteorological Department had recently predicted that the hot weather spell in Karachi will continue till the mid of June.

The met office earlier said that the weather will remain hot in the metropolis until after Eid, however, after June 15, the temperature will likely to recede.

The monsoon will likely to begin in the port city from July, the met office said.

Earlier, the weather department, in a warning, had said that the heatwave is likely to grip Karachi and surrounding areas from May 25 to 27.

Nevertheless, Pakistan Meteorological Department’s Heatwave Early Warning Centre later downgraded the heatwave alert “as mild heatwave” with hot and humid weather likely to prevail.

In an earlier heatwave from May 1st–3rd, the maximum temperature in Karachi had soared up to 42°C.