KARACHI: Pakistani authorities said on Sunday they are waiting for salvage tugs to arrive and immediately start a rescue operation for a giant cargo ship stuck off the coast of Karachi as oil leakage is feared.
The MV Heng Tong 77, a cargo ship with a capacity of 3,600 dead weight tonnage, was on the way from Shanghai to Turkey, as it anchored in Pakistan’s territorial waters for a crew change. According to the Karachi Port Trust (KPT), it lost its anchors due to extreme weather and started drifting toward shallow waters in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
While the maritime affairs ministry started an inquiry into the incident, the ship stuck at Karachi’s Seaview beach. The KTP's pollution control team on Sunday sealed off a part of the beach as the vessel is carrying 118 tons of bunker fuel.
"We hope to start operation as soon as the rescue tugs arrive. It may start today (Sunday) or sometime tomorrow," Shariq Amin, KPT spokesman told Arab News. "At the moment groundwork is underway to thwart any untoward incident of oil leakage."
KPT Marine Pollution Control Rapid Response team is monitoring the site non-stop, he said, adding that the Panama-flagged vessel's owner has sent an expert from China to help with the rescue operation, which must correspond tide timings.
While there are no signs of leakage from the vessel, the Pakistan Navy said on Saturday it had been acting under a pollution contingency plan.
“Commander Coast has been nominated as On Scene Commander (OSC) to supervise the on-site preparations to contain risk of pollution in coordination with PMSA (Pakistan Maritime Security Agency) and KPT," the navy said in a statement.
"Anti-pollution barrier has been deployed by KPT around the grounded ship and other response elements are being mustered in vicinity. MV Heng Tong 77 is carrying 118 tons of bunker fuel which is a source of immediate concern."
Pakistan waiting for rescue tugs as leakage feared from giant ship stuck off Karachi
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Pakistan waiting for rescue tugs as leakage feared from giant ship stuck off Karachi
- Vessel lost anchors due to extreme weather and drifted towards shallow water on Wednesday morning
- MV Heng Tong 77 in is carrying 118 tons of bunker fuel which authorities say is a source of immediate concern
Pakistan rescue service searches for missing person as Swat River death toll rises to 12
- Thirteen people were swept away by flash flooding in Pakistan’s northwestern Swat River this week
- Flash floods from heavy rains killed at least 19 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 12 in Punjab in past three days
ISLAMABAD: The death toll from drowning in the wake of flash flooding in Pakistan’s northwestern Swat River has climbed to 12, a leading emergency rescue service said on Sunday, saying it it still searching for one missing person.
Flash flooding due to heavy rain caused the Swat River water to rise to dangerous levels at several locations across the mountainous valley on Friday, according to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Rescue 1122 emergency service.
Rescue 1122 KP spokesperson Bilal Faizi said on Friday a total of 16 people had been trapped in the floods, adding that three had been rescued.
“The body of Danial, who was from Mardan and lost his life in the Swat incident, has been recovered from the Charsadda,” Rescue 1122 said in a statement.
“With this recovery, the total number of confirmed deaths has risen to 12.”
Rescue 1122 said its teams were searching for a missing child from Sialkot who was also among those trapped in the floods.
State broadcaster Radio Pakistan said the deceased and missing persons belong to Pakistan’s Sialkot, Daska and Mardan cities.
Provincial disaster authorities said on Saturday that flash floods from torrential rains killed at least 19 people and injured six in the last 48 hours in Pakistan’s northwestern KP province, while heavy rains killed 12 in Pakistan’s most populous Punjab province.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department has warned that the risk of heavy rains and possible flash floods will remain high until at least Tuesday.
Pakistan, home to over 240 million people, is considered one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change and faces extreme weather events with increasing frequency.
Last month, at least 24 people were killed in severe storms across the country, which has already experienced multiple extreme weather incidents this year, including hailstorms and spring downpours.
Pakistan’s Sindh reports fourth death from brain-eating amoeba
- Seventeen-year-old Karachi resident, took a bath from piped water before illness, says report
- Pakistan has seen rise in Naegleria fowleri cases recently, with over 100 reported since 2008
KARACHI: The provincial health department in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province this week reported another death from Naegleria fowleri, making it the fourth casualty of the disease from the province this year.
Naegleria fowleri, commonly known as the brain-eating amoeba, has a fatality rate of over 98 percent. It is transmitted when contaminated water enters the body through the nose and cannot be spread from person to person.
The latest victim of the disease was a resident of Karachi’s central district area, who started experiencing symptoms such as fever, body aches and vomiting on June 25. Syed Ali Raza Shah, 17, was hospitalized at the Agha Khan University Hospital on June 26 and on June 27, was shifted to ventilator support after his condition deteriorated.
“On 28th June 2025: At around 12:00:PM patient expired in medical ICU on the ventilator at Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi,” the Sindh Health Department’s report said on Saturday.
The report said Shah did not have a history of swimming nor performing ablution before the illness. However, the patient had taken a bath before his illness.
The report pointed out that an overhead tank was the source of water in the deceased’s house, which had not been cleaned in the past six months. It said response activities will be conducted in the deceased’s area of residence after his funeral.
“Report submitted to higher authorities for planning and awareness sessions will be conducted on 29th and 30th June in the affected area,” the report said.
As per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Naegleria fowleri lives in soil and warm freshwater lakes, rivers, ponds, and hot springs around the world. In very rare cases, it has been found in poorly maintained swimming pools, splash pads, and other recreational venues.
If water containing the ameba goes up the nose and to the brain, it can cause an infection called primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM).
In most cases in Pakistan, infections have occurred when people use tap water that contains Naegleria fowleri to rinse their sinuses or cleanse their nasal passages.
Pakistan has witnessed a rise in Naegleria fowleri cases in recent years, with more than 100 reported deaths since the first confirmed infection in 2008. Five fatalities were recorded in 2024 alone.
Pakistan says ‘actively engaged’ with UK to ensure lifting of PIA ban
- UK, EU banned PIA after Pakistan probed validity of pilots’ licenses after 2020 Karachi plane crash
- PIA CEO requests “further diplomatic assistance” from Pakistan’s FM to ensure lifting of UK ban
ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar has assured Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Islamabad is “actively engaged” with British authorities to ensure a ban on the national carrier from operating flights to the United Kingdom (UK) is lifted at the earliest, state-run media reported this week.
PIA was banned by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), United Kingdom (UK) and United States US authorities after Pakistan opened an investigation into the validity of pilots’ licenses following a PIA plane crash in Karachi, in May 2020, that killed 97 people.
PIA resumed flights to Europe in January after EASA lifted its four-year safety ban on the airline. The national carrier has also approached UK authorities for permission to resume its services to the country.
Dar, who also serves as Pakistan’s foreign minister, met PIA’s Chief Executive Officer Amir Hayat on Saturday to discuss matters related to the airline, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported.
“On the occasion, the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister said he and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are actively engaged with the UK authorities to ensure lifting of the ban at the earliest,” Radio Pakistan said.
Hayat requested Dar for “further diplomatic assistance” to ensure the resumption of PIA flights to the UK, the report said.
Pakistan hopes new European routes and flying approval to the UK will boost PIA’s selling potential, as Islamabad plans on privatizing the loss-making national airline.
PIA, once a respected carrier in Asia, has been supported by taxpayers for decades due to political interference, corruption and inefficiencies. Its privatization has also repeatedly collapsed amid union resistance, legal hurdles and low investor appetite.
Cash-strapped Pakistan has been attempting to privatize the debt-ridden PIA to raise funds as part of its efforts to reform state-owned enterprises under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) program secured last year.
Late last year, a deal fell through after a potential buyer reportedly offered $36 million for a 60 percent stake in the national flag carrier, a fraction of the asking price of approximately $303 million.
Officials say PIA’s cumulative losses alone are close to $3 billion, with the total asset valuation of the airline standing at approximately $572 million.
Pakistan plans to hold the final bidding to sell the PIA by October and complete its sale by the end of this year, the country’s privatization czar told Arab News this week.
Last week, five consortiums submitted expressions of interest for a 51–100 percent stake in PIA after the government restructured its balance sheet to make the deal more attractive.
5.3-magnitude quake hits central Pakistan
- US Geological Survey says quake’s epicenter located around 60 kilometers northeast of Balochistan’s Barkhan city
- Pakistan straddles boundary where Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet, making it susceptible for quakes
ISLAMABAD: A magnitude-5.3 earthquake struck central Pakistan on Sunday morning, according to the United States Geological Survey.
There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage from the shallow quake, which USGS reported had occurred around 3:30 am (2230 GMT) with the epicenter around 60 kilometers (37 miles) north-northeast of Barkhan, a city in Pakistan’s mountainous Balochistan province.
Pakistan straddles the boundary where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet, making the country susceptible to earthquakes.
The region can be challenging to navigate during crisis situations — in 2015, a 7.5-magnitude quake in Pakistan and Afghanistan killed almost 400 people across rugged terrain that impeded relief efforts.
The country was also hit by a 7.6-magnitude quake in 2005 that killed more than 73,000 people and left about 3.5 million homeless, mainly in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir.
Balochistan province, Pakistan’s largest, saw a quake in 2021 that killed at least 20 people and left more than 10 injured, with landslides hampering initial rescue efforts in the remote mountainous district of Harnai.
Islamabad says 21,700 Hajj pilgrims have left for Pakistan from Madinah
- Pakistani pilgrims arrive in Madinah after completing their Hajj rituals in holy city of Makkah
- Pakistan’s post-Hajj flight operation, which began on June 11, expected to continue till July 10
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s post-Hajj flight operations are in full swing as 21,700 pilgrims have so far departed for Pakistan from Madinah, state-run media reported this week, with more expected to leave in the coming days.
Pakistan began its post-Hajj flight operations on June 11 with the arrival of a Pakistan International Airlines flight, PK-732, in Islamabad carrying 307 pilgrims. The flights are expected to conclude by July 10.
State broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported on Saturday that Pakistani pilgrims are arriving in Madinah following the completion of their Hajj rituals in Makkah. It said the post-Hajj phase has begun under the supervision of the newly established Main Control Office (MCO) to facilitate Pakistani pilgrims for their return to the country.
“So far, 21,700 Pakistani pilgrims have departed for Pakistan from Madinah, with the remaining expected to leave in the coming days,” the state broadcaster said.
It said the MCO, set up in coordination with the Pakistan Hajj Mission Madinah, has been equipped with dedicated sections such as Lost and Found, Complaint Cell, Airport Team and other support services.
It said all sections are fully operational to ensure seamless facilitation for pilgrims traveling from Makkah to Madinah before their return to Pakistan.
“The office is managing pilgrims’ accommodation, food, transportation, and other logistical needs during their stay in Madinah,” Radio Pakistan said.
Pakistan received a quota of 179,210 pilgrims from Saudi Arabia for Hajj 2025, which was evenly divided between the government and private Hajj operators.
While the government filled its full allocation of over 88,000 pilgrims, a major portion of the private quota remained unutilized due to delays by companies in meeting payment and registration deadlines.
