Record hot sun in Pakistan, nearly 700 people died

Pakistani officials said nearly 700 people in the south of the country were killed in the heat wave that lasted three days and doctors are actively treating patients after an emergency situation was announced in many hospitals.

Nearly 700 people died from the heat in Pakistan

Most of the dead live in the port city of Karachi , an economic gateway with about 20 million people of Pakistan and the capital of Sindh province. The temperature here last week was 45 degrees Celsius, AFP quoted Sabir Memon, senior provincial health official, said.

Relatives focus on the body of a victim who died of heat shock in Karachi, Pakistan, today.(Photo: AFP.)

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif called on the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) to take emergency measures after the number of deaths due to the heat rose to nearly 700. According to BBC, the highest temperature in Karachi is 47 degrees Celsius, recorded in 1979.

Pakistani troops are mobilized to establish centers for dealing with heat shock and support NDMA.

Semi Jamali, the largest hospital doctor in Karachi, said they treated about 3,000 patients. More than 200 of these people died before and after hospitalization.

Most victims are older people in low-income families.

The heatwave took place in a country of nearly 200 million people, mostly Muslim, at the beginning of Ramadan . During Ramadan, Muslims will not eat or drink during the time between sunrise and sunset.

Electricity shortages also affect the water supply system in Karachi, making millions of liters of water impossible to reach people, the national water agency said.

Many protests took place in parts of Karachi. Some blame the government and K-Electric, the main power supply unit for Karachi, for failing to stop the death toll.

The Pakistan Meteorological Office predicts that the temperature of Karachi today is still 44.5 degrees Celsius and there are thunderstorms in the evening.

The Sindh provincial government announces a holiday to encourage people to stay indoors, an official said. Most victims are workers working outdoors.

India , Pakistan's neighboring country, also recently suffered intense heat waves that killed more than 2,000 people.