Help Pakistan Heat Wave Victims Now

Karachi, one of Pakistan's largest cities, and Sindh province have been hit by a heatwave, causing more than 1000 men, women, and children to suffer heatstroke and die in less than a week. Over 14, 000 and growing have been afflicted by heat stroke. Concerned citizens and local organizations are doing whatever they can to help alleviate the crisis and save lives.

Imagine this: Temperatures are over 113 degrees Fahrenheit. You are 12 years old and laboring under the blazing sun to earn money for your family so they can survive. You are poor and have no shelter, no water, and no access to medical care. You are sick and unable to function in the heat, and don't understand why. You finally goto a government hospital where doctors are working round the clock to save lives - but the hospital lacks resources and infrastructure to take care of you and thousands more like you who are crowding the hallways, the streets, and the corridors. The rooms are full to capacity, there is no cooling system, toilets are overflowing, and hygiene is non-existent. 

A trustworthy local grassroots organization, Elaj Trust, and Jibran Nasir (Pakistani human rights activist) have obtained permission to provide three types of much-needed infrastructure support to one of Karachi's largest and most affected government hospitals, Jinnah Post-Graduate Medical Center (JPMC). :

1. Purchase and installation of 18 standing air-conditioning units. Each standing AC (3.5 tons each) costs 116,000 Pakistani rupees.

2. Purchase and installation of generators since JPMCs voltage load cannot accommodate the ACs.

3. Janitorial services to clean the hospital and maintain hygienic conditions for doctors and patients to prevent additional infections and complications. 

The ACs will be bought as Trust property under Elaj Trust and will be provided on loan to JPMC so that we remain in control and responsible for maintanence. The ACs will continue to operate at JPMC after Ramzan and will only be moved in case of any other emergency in any other government hospital in Karachi.

For the total upfront cost of the Janitorial services and ACs, they need to raise 2.5 million rupees (~$25,000) immediately. After that they will only need costs for maintainable diesel/rent for generators.

Elaj Trust is in the process of establishing a bank account for this purpose so they can receive direct donations from outside Pakistan. In the meantime, if you are in the US, you can donate through this campaign and I will transfer the money to them. All transactions will be transparent and 100% of the proceeds will go towards the purchase of the equipment and services as described.

About me: I am a public health researcher, working in Princeton NJ, originally from Pakistan.