By Aamir Latif
KARACHI, Pakistan
After a week of extreme conditions, the effects of a heatwave that killed 1,200 people are easing in southern Pakistan.
According to hospitals in Karachi, the country's commercial capital and the worst-hit area, 1,083 have died in the city, including 33 on Friday.
The southern Sindh province's Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah said earlier in the week that 200 more had also died in parts of the province outside Karachi.
Though the temperature on Friday has eased to 36 degrees Centigrade (97 Fahrenheit), from a high of 45, with the arrival of clouds ahead of expected monsoon rains, hundreds are still being treated for heatstroke in Karachi hospitals, according to health officials.
Power cuts that have lasted up to 12 hours a day in parts of the country appear to be one of the major factors behind the high number of deaths.
The water and power authorities have blamed increasing demand for the power cuts, which have also led to a water shortage, especially in the slums of Karachi where water pumping stations cannot operate without electricity.
According to local media, many of those killed were laborers and workers from further north, who could not cope with the intensity of the heat and humidity.
For the past week, the mostly Muslim population of Pakistan has been abstaining from food or water during daylight hours, as they fast for the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
