30-year rain record broken in Lahore

• Punjab CM directs emergency departments to gear up
• Emergency measures are required, says CM Maryam. 
• Karachi may receive light rain today, says Met Office.

Lahore received as high as 315 millimetres of rain on Friday, breaking a 30-year-old record and leaving the city drenched in water.

Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) Managing Director Muhammad Ghufran confirmed that the fresh spell had broken a 30-year-old record as the Tajpura area received 315 mm of rain. He said last year, 291 mm of rain was recorded at the city’s Lakshmi Chowk, which received 170 mm rain this year.

He said the WASA staff was active in the field and continuously monitoring the situation.

"The water has been removed from Lakshmi Chowk and other areas are also being cleared. Soon the city will be cleared of rainwater," said the WASA MD.

The neighbourhoods of Pani Wala Talab received 151 mm rain, Qurtuba Chowk 152 mm, Gulshan-e-Ravi 151 mm, Mughalpura 145 mm, Airport 86 mm, Upper Mall 130 mm, Samanabad 153 mm, Iqbal Town 152 mm, Gulberg Town 105 mm, Chowk Nakhuda 155 mm, Nishter Town 162 mm, Jail Road 69 mm and Farrukhabad 140 mm.

It is pertinent here to mention that the Met Office has forecast more rains in the metropolis during the next 24 hours, which could further increase the level of rainwater.

Islamabad, Rawalpindi, and several other areas of the province also received heavy rainfall, causing problems for the residents.

Apart from Lahore, Islamabad, and Rawalpindi, Nikyal and Barnala areas of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gujranwala, Jehlam, Mandibahauddin, Hafizabad, Sargodha, Pakpattan and their adjacent areas too experienced heavy showers. A host of areas suffered from power outages as well.

People encountered immense trouble as rainwater accumulated in a large number of areas — including Rawalpindi's Dhok Kashmirian, Sadiqabad and Dhok Kala Khan as well as Lahore's Devis Road, Nisbat Road, Gawalmandi, Krishan Nagar, Rajgarh, Mazang, Achara, Faisal Town, Garden Town, Gulberg, Mughalpura, Wasanpura, Badami Bagh and Shahdara.

The WASA managing director said staff was deployed for water drainage in low-lying areas and arrangements were complete viewing flooding in the Lai Nullah.

Viewing the emergency situation, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has directed the local administration and Wasa authorities to take immediate measures to drain the stormwater in all the cities, including Lahore.

The Punjab CM directed the staff and officers to visit the vulnerable areas and remain in the field till the rainwater was completely drained.

She directed Rescue 1122 and other departments as well to brace up for an emergency situation in advance.

“Work on drainage of main arteries and low-lying areas should continue uninterruptedly. Emergency measures are required to deal with the situation created in various cities because of continuous rain,” she said.

Maryam said rainwater should not be seen in streets and markets, while the traffic police should clear roads for easy flow of vehicular traffic.

Karachi may experience light rain today evening

On the other hand, Karachi is likely to receive drizzle or light rain today (Friday) evening or tonight, the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said in its daily forecast on Friday.

As per the Met Office, the weather is expected to remain comparatively pleasant after the metropolis has suffered a long spell of heatwave. While, a couple of late intermittent showers have already made a difference.

Sky would remain partly cloudy during the next 24 hours, the PMD said adding strong winds were also likely to blow.

The meteorological department recorded the minimum temperature in the city at 30°C and humidity in the air at 76 %. Whereas, the mercury might rise maximum up to 33-35°C during the day.

The PMD said sea breezes were blowing at the speed of 27 to 32 kilometres an hour.

Meanwhile, as the Met Office predicted on Wednesday, heavy rains are predicted for Karachi after July 20. Which would, if happened, fulfill the Karachiites’ desire as they are still longing to break free from hot weather.