Twelve people were killed in rain-related incidents in Lahore and Sarai Alamgir on Friday, as heavy downpour and windstorms lashed several cities in Punjab and other parts of the country, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
After a long spell of heatwave in which temperatures were gone up as high as 48 degree Celsius though the much-awaited rain brought relief for the heat-stricken people but at the same time, the heavy wet showers brought miseries along with them.
The rain poured hard in Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lalamusa, Laliyan, Dina, Nankana Sahib, Sangla Hill and Rawalakot.
The heavy rain proved both bane and boon for the citizens as a family of six was perished when their car lost control due to pounding rain and fell into a canal in Sarai Alamgir.
Rescue officials managed to take out the car from the canal after a hectic effort of 3 hours. They also fished out dead bodies of all six car riders who were drowned and shifted the bodies to a hospital.
The dead included one toddler and five adults. They were identified as: Saeed (23) Saif (2), Rashida Begum (70), Abida Parveen (50), Nadia (28) and Shaheen Akhtar (45).
They belonged to the same family and were residents of Kohar, Sarai Alamgir.
In another incident, at least five members of a family died in a wall collapse incident in Lahore amid gale-force winds in the city.
According to Rescue 1122, the incident took place in the Awan Market area of Lahore.
A man, his two sons and a daughter and a female relative of them were among the deceased.
“The family was asleep at the roof of their house when a newly-constructed wall of an adjoining house fell over them, burying six persons under the debris,” said Rescue 1122.
The rescue teams reached the spot and retrieved two dead bodies from the rubble.
Four other persons were rescued in injured condition and rushed to a hospital where three of them succumbed to their wounds.
In another incident in Shahdara near Lahore, a man died when roof of his house collapse in Wandala Road locality.
Five other people injured in another roof collapse incident on Bund Road in Lahore.
Poor rain water management facilities
The heavy rain exposed poor rain water disposal management by the local authorities as the low lying areas in Lahore have totally inundated creating great difficulties for the motorists and pedestrians.
Apart from this, people also seem enjoying the pleasant weather as mercury level has dripped to 26 degree Celsius in the morning in Lahore after a long heatwave spell which has been continued since April.
The Metrological Office has predicted more showers in the next 24 hours.
In Noshera Virkan, intermittent rain continues lashing the city giving much needed respite to heat-stricken public.
However, the sense of relief is vitiated when rain is followed by power outages due to poor electricity transmission system which quickly falls apart as soon as the rain and windstorm hit. The city is without power for the last 12 hours.
In Layyah, the sky is overcast and cool breeze is blowing, making weather pleasant. According to the Met office report, rain is expected to pound the city. The minimum temperature will remain 26 degree Celsius while maximum temperature will be 38 degree Celsius.
Reporters Syed Tanvir Naqvi, Komal Rizvi and Muhammad Amin Goraya