Dr Aijaz said doctors and paramedics at public hospital were told to remain on duty and ensure they had adequate medical supplies including medicines, ice, water and drips, etc in case of a heatwave emergency.
Dr. Seemin Jamali, the joint executive director at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, said her hospital had made special arrangements to handle heatstroke cases.
She advised citizens to drink plenty of water, avoid going out into the sun as much as possible and wear light and loose clothing on Sunday.
“When going out, citizens should keep their heads covered and carry a wet towel as well,” she added.
Depression over Indian coast
Meteorologists said a low pressure had formed in the Bay of Bengal and turned into a depression over central India. They added that now it was near the coastal areas of India, adjacent to Sindh’s coastal belt, and had blocked Karachi’s sea breeze and the blowing of north-westerly winds or dry winds from Balochistan that were warmer with lesser humidity, increasing the temperature in the city.
Regional Meteorological Centre Karachi director Abdur Rashid said as the sea breeze had been blocked by the depression, Karachi’s temperature had reached 42.7 degree Celsius but as the humidity was less than 26 percent, the heat index had remained within tolerable limits.
He added that the weather in Karachi would remain a similar on Sunday with the temperature ranging between 41 and 43 degrees Celsius
On Monday, the temperature will be around 40 degrees Celsius. “The temperature will start decreasing from Monday night,” he said.
Turbat was the warmest place in Pakistan where the temperature reached 46 degrees Celsius.
Rashid said there were no chances of rain in Karachi because of the current weather system on the coastal belt of India but it might cause moderate rains in the upper and central parts of the province.