Heatwave in Asia

People queue at dawn: "How are we going to cope?"

One of the few things that bites in Nasirabad's extreme heat are the large blocks of ice sold at the city's ice factory every morning. 12-year-old Taimoor is one of those queuing and hoping to help his family endure another scorching day in Pakistan, writes The Guardian.

- If I don't bring the ice home, how will we cope in the heat back home? And how will we drink the water that feels like it's boiling?

Finally, the 12-year-old reaches the spot and then rushes home to leave the ice with his pregnant mother, before setting off for school with a small ice cube in his pocket to cool himself.

Large blocks of ice the salvation in heatwave Pakistan

When daylight reaches Nasirabad, a queue is already forming outside the city's ice factory. Seven o'clock is drawn The metal shutters are up, and within two hours all 400 ice blocks made overnight are sold, reports The Guardian.

The temperatures in this part of Pakistan are sometimes almost unbearable. How residents manage to protect themselves from the heat depends largely on what they can find, buy or improvise. Electricity is available for about three hours a day, and those who can afford it use solar panels to run fans. For many others, the ice blocks are their only salvation.

The demand for ice is so great that many residents queue in vain, says owner Mohammad Haider.

“It makes me sad when people don’t get their hands on ice before it runs out. They are then forced to drink lukewarm water all day,” says Haider.