Flood warning as Pakistan braces for heavy monsoon spell in next 48 hours

Different areas of north and north-east Punjab received light to heavy rain on Monday morning that brought relief to the people from hot and humid weather, while the Met Office, on the other hand, said that more monsoon rains were expected, especially in Punjab, Sindh and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) during the next two days, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Attock and its adjoining areas received thundershowers that offered locals a respite from heat and mugginess.  

Similarly, it also rained in Shakargarh and Narowal, bringing smiles on people’s faces fed up with extreme humidity.  

It drizzled in different parts of Lahore, including Jail Road, Canal Road, Garhi Shahu, Abbot Road, Lakshmi Chowk and surrounding areas, while cool winds made the weather pleasant.    

Rain was also reported from twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

On the other hand, the weather department forecast that heavy rains in AJK and north-east Punjab on Monday and Tuesday would result in deluge in local streams and nullahs.

It said rain, accompanied by strong winds, was also expected in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, while heavy rain was likely at a few places in Islamabad and adjoining areas during the aforementioned period.   

Similarly, it predicted thundershowers for different parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) namely Dir, Swat, Abbottabad, Mansehra, Haripur, Buner, Malakand, Bajaur, Mardan, Swabi, Nowshera, Peshawar, Mohmand, Kohat, Khyber, Kurram, Karak, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Dera Ismael Khan and Waziristan.

The Met Office said that torrential rains were expected at a few places in the upper parts of KP.

It forecast heavy rains, accompanied by strong winds, in different areas of Punjab namely Sialkot, Narowal, Mandi Bahauddin, Murree, Galyat, Rawalpindi, Attock, Chakwal, Jhelum, Sargodha, Mianwali, Gujrat, Khushab, Gujranwala, Hafizabad, Lahore, Sheikhupura, Kasur, Okara, Faisalabad, Chiniot, Jhang, Pakpattan, Sahiwal, Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar, Dera Ghazi Khan, Bhakkar, Layyah, Multan, Khanewal, Muzzafargarh, Kot Addu, Taunsa, Rajanpur and Rahim Yar Khan.

The weather department predicted heavy rains at a few places in north-east Punjab and south Punjab.

Likewise, it forecast rains for parts of Balochistan namely Zhob, Sherani, Musakhel, Barkhan, Kohlu, Loralai, Sibbi, Harnai, Ziarat, Quetta, Naseerabad, Dera Bugti, Jaafarabad, Kalat, Khuzdar, Lasbela, Awaran, Kech and Panjgur.

Heavy rains were expected at a few places in these areas, the Met Office said.

The weather department also predicted heavy rains, accompanied by strong winds, for different parts of Sindh namely Tharparkar, Umarkot, Sanghar, Mirpurkhas, Mithi, Thatta, Badin, Sajawal, Karachi, Jamshoro, Tando Muhammad Khan, Hyderabad, Shaheed Benazirabad, Sukkur, Shikarpur, Khairpur, Kashmore, Larkana, Jacobabad and Dadu.

It said that torrential rains were likely at a few places in these districts.

The Met Office forecast rains, heavy at isolated places, for different parts of AJK.

PDMA issues an alert

On the other hand, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) issued an alert for all concerned departments in Punjab in order to deal with any situation, arising out of heavy rains especially in north-eastern districts of the province.

Reporter: Yasir Arafat