KARACHI, Sept 6, (Agencies): Pakistani authorities were Monday racing to protect two southern towns and their 360,000 residents from surging floods, as the nation struggles to cope with its worst natural disaster in living memory.
A month-and-a-half after monsoons caused devastating floods throughout the country, submerging an area the size of England, eight million people remain dependent on handouts for their survival, which many say are too slow coming.
Advancing floodwaters continue to threaten towns in Sindh province, where 19 of its 23 districts have been deluged, displacing more than 2.8 million people, according to provincial authorities.
“The situation is a bit serious in Johi town and Dadu. We are taking all-out measures to save them from ravaging floodwaters,” provincial irrigation minister Jam Saifullah Dharejo told AFP.
“The water is 20 kilometres away from Dadu city but we cannot rule out a serious threat to this city,” one of the largest in the north of Sindh, Dharejo said.

“We are making all our efforts to save Dadu and Johi,” he added.
Dadu and Johi are about 320 kms (200 miles) north of the main southern port city of Karachi and officials fear the waters will breach protective embankments unless they are quickly strengthened.
“Things are getting serious, we have employed all the possible resources on the embankments to save the remaining towns and villages of Dadu district,” Dharejo said.
District coordination officer Iqbal Memon said Johi was more in danger from the advancing floods.
“The floodwaters are fast heading towards Johi town after inundating most parts of Khairpur Nathan Shah and Mehar towns and several surrounding villages in Dadu district,” he said.
“For two days, we are employing all available means to strengthen the protective embankments around Dadu and Johi but the threat still remains,” he said.
About 80 percent of the Johi’s population of 60,000 had already fled to safer areas. Memon, however, asked the 300,000 residents of Dadu not to panic.

“The people of Dadu city should remain vigilant for any serious situation that could come across,” he said.
Meanwhile, army troops evacuated 2,644 people from various flood-hit areas of Jati, Mehar, Johi, Shahdad Kot and Sujawal, the military said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Abid Hussein fears the deep floodwaters that destroyed his cotton crop, rotted his wheat seeds and swept away his farming tools are not done ravaging his life.
Just weeks before the wheat planting season is to start, his 1.5-acre (0.6-hectare) farm still lies under 3 feet (0.9 meter) of water, and he is certain it will not drain in time. “I will not be able to plant,” the 35-year-old father of four said in despair.
The floodwaters that already devastated one crop in the fields are threatening the next season’s crop as well, an aftershock aid workers fear could add to Pakistan’s misery and prolong the crisis.
If they miss this season, farmers in the flood areas won’t be able to plant wheat for another year and won’t harvest it until May 2012, leaving many dependent on food aid for the foreseeable future.
“It’s a race against time in areas,” said Truls Brekke, a spokesman for the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization.