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Pakistan

Life In The Hottest City In The World

Jacobabad, Pakistan, was named the hottest city on the planet last month. Women in southern Pakistan, like millions of others around the world, are living on the searing edge of climate change. Pregnant women who are exposed to heat for extended periods of time have a higher risk of complications, according to a review of 70 studies published since the mid-1990s. For every 1 degree Celsius in temperature rise, the number of stillbirths and premature deliveries increases by about 5 percent, according to the meta-analysis, which was carried out by several research institutions globally and published in the British Medical Journal in September 2020.

Sonari, a heavily pregnant woman, collects muskmelons at a farm on the outskirts of Jacobabad on May 17. Women in poor countries on the front lines of climate change are particularly vulnerable to rising temperatures because many are required to work during their pregnancies and soon after giving birth.
1 Sonari, a heavily pregnant woman, collects muskmelons at a farm on the outskirts of Jacobabad on May 17. Women in poor countries on the front lines of climate change are particularly vulnerable to rising temperatures because many are required to work during their pregnancies and soon after giving birth.
Women and children try to cool off with water while working on a farm near Jacobabad during a record-breaking heat wave. Meteorologists called the May 14 temperature of 51 degrees Celsius highly unusual. The average maximum daytime temperature in Jacobabad is usually around 43 degrees, with a nighttime low of  26 degrees.
2 Women and children try to cool off with water while working on a farm near Jacobabad during a record-breaking heat wave. Meteorologists called the May 14 temperature of 51 degrees Celsius highly unusual. The average maximum daytime temperature in Jacobabad is usually around 43 degrees, with a nighttime low of  26 degrees.
Biban, a pregnant farmer, clears unwanted grass at a farm during a heat wave on May 17. The World Meteorological Organization reported that the extreme heat that gripped large parts of Pakistan was made 30 times more likely because of climate change, according to a new rapid-attribution study by climate scientists.   
3 Biban, a pregnant farmer, clears unwanted grass at a farm during a heat wave on May 17. The World Meteorological Organization reported that the extreme heat that gripped large parts of Pakistan was made 30 times more likely because of climate change, according to a new rapid-attribution study by climate scientists. 
 
Rehmat, 30, helps Razia, 25, cool her 6-month-old daughter, Tamanna, during the heat wave in Jacobabad.   
4 Rehmat, 30, helps Razia, 25, cool her 6-month-old daughter, Tamanna, during the heat wave in Jacobabad. 
 
Children have a smaller body-mass-to-surface-area ratio than adults, making them more vulnerable to heat-related morbidity and mortality. 
5 Children have a smaller body-mass-to-surface-area ratio than adults, making them more vulnerable to heat-related morbidity and mortality. 
Zahida, 16, washes clothes during the heat wave outside her two-room family home in Jacobabad. Jacobabad's roughly 200,000 residents are well aware of their reputation as one of the world's hottest cities. "If we go to hell, we'll take a blanket," is a common joke told in the area. Few places are more punishing. 
6 Zahida, 16, washes clothes during the heat wave outside her two-room family home in Jacobabad. Jacobabad's roughly 200,000 residents are well aware of their reputation as one of the world's hottest cities. "If we go to hell, we'll take a blanket," is a common joke told in the area. Few places are more punishing. 
Razia and her daughter Tamanna sit in front of a fan to cool off during the sweltering heat on May 15. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) released a report on Pakistan's long-term prospects, painting a bleak picture of problems that the country will face, such as longer, more intense heat waves, droughts, and an increase in poverty. As food production declines, women and children will be more vulnerable to malnourishment and malnutrition.
7 Razia and her daughter Tamanna sit in front of a fan to cool off during the sweltering heat on May 15. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) released a report on Pakistan's long-term prospects, painting a bleak picture of problems that the country will face, such as longer, more intense heat waves, droughts, and an increase in poverty. As food production declines, women and children will be more vulnerable to malnourishment and malnutrition.
Young boys try to cool down during the heat wave as a water buffalo sits in the mud behind them. Nearly 90 percent of Pakistan's agriculture is supported by irrigation from the glacier-fed River Indus and its tributaries. Climate change has accelerated glacier melt, increasing the likelihood of glacier-lake-outburst floods and flash floods downstream, according to the OCHA. Rapid glacier melt, rising temperatures, shifting seasons, and erratic rainfall patterns are all altering the flow of the Indus, which will have an increasing impact on agricultural activities, food production, and livelihoods.
8 Young boys try to cool down during the heat wave as a water buffalo sits in the mud behind them.

Nearly 90 percent of Pakistan's agriculture is supported by irrigation from the glacier-fed River Indus and its tributaries. Climate change has accelerated glacier melt, increasing the likelihood of glacier-lake-outburst floods and flash floods downstream, according to the OCHA. Rapid glacier melt, rising temperatures, shifting seasons, and erratic rainfall patterns are all altering the flow of the Indus, which will have an increasing impact on agricultural activities, food production, and livelihoods.
During the heat wave, farmer Waderi, 17, fans her 1-month-old son Amar Kumar at home on the outskirts of Jacobabad. According to the United States Geological Survey, freshwater availability in Central, South, East, and Southeast Asia is expected to decline by the 2050s, with coastal areas at risk due to increased flooding. The death rate from disease associated with floods and droughts is expected to rise.   
9 During the heat wave, farmer Waderi, 17, fans her 1-month-old son Amar Kumar at home on the outskirts of Jacobabad.

According to the United States Geological Survey, freshwater availability in Central, South, East, and Southeast Asia is expected to decline by the 2050s, with coastal areas at risk due to increased flooding. The death rate from disease associated with floods and droughts is expected to rise. 



 
Children sit in a classroom during a power outage at the Adolescent and Adult Learning and Training Program in Jacobabad.  To address Pakistan's serious environmental challenges, the government has announced ambitious plans to reduce emissions as well as initiatives such as former Prime Minister Imran Khan's 10 Billion Tree Tsunami project, which aimed to restore the country's rapidly dwindling forest cover. However, the state's political insecurity, corruption, and poor planning have made it difficult to implement the necessary changes to ensure the health of its most vulnerable citizens.
10 Children sit in a classroom during a power outage at the Adolescent and Adult Learning and Training Program in Jacobabad. 

To address Pakistan's serious environmental challenges, the government has announced ambitious plans to reduce emissions as well as initiatives such as former Prime Minister Imran Khan's 10 Billion Tree Tsunami project, which aimed to restore the country's rapidly dwindling forest cover. However, the state's political insecurity, corruption, and poor planning have made it difficult to implement the necessary changes to ensure the health of its most vulnerable citizens.

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