Floods threaten parts of southern Pakistan

People in parts of Sindh province in southern Pakistan are bracing for more floods as water threatens to pour into more towns and villages.

In Mehar, a community in the Dadu district, residents are hoping a mud dike will protect the area fromflood waters.

"Those waters have advanced right up to the dike and there are people monitoring that night and day for breaches," CBC's Tom Parrysaid from Mehar.

"Every oncein a while the water starts to break through and the men have to scramble to try and patch that up."

Parry said people inMehar are trying to protect their homes by building brick walls in front of door frames in hopesthe new walls will block the water if the dike is breached.

But some people aren't taking chances and are leaving for higher ground.

"Its beginning to look like a ghost town," CBC's Nahlah Ayed said Wednesday.

"Really, the only people who remain are the men. They have sent their families away, their children, their women and have remained there essentially to try to protect their own property."

Other towns in the area, including Johi and Dadu,are also at risk, a local newspaper reported.

More than 1,700 people have died andthe UN estimates almost 21million people have been affected by the floods in Pakistan, which began about six weeks ago in the northwest.

Valerie Amos, the newly appointed United Nations emergency relief co-ordinator, arrived in Pakistan on Tuesday tosee the devastation and call for more aid.

"The floods here in Pakistan have affected almost 21 million people it is one of the biggest humanitarian crises the world has seen,"Amos said.

She called for increased international support for the South Asian nation, saying donations seem to have hit a plateau, with new donations dropping to "just $20 million US over the last two weeks."

"It is both worrying and disappointing that this is happening when the needs continue to rise and the suffering is still so evident," she said in a statement.