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Friday March 29, 2024

Parts of Peshawar inundated after heavy rain

Thousands of citizens stranded; train service suspended; Chitral death toll reaches 31 as relief efforts under way; NDMA says floods claimed 50 lives, destroyed 773 houses across Pakistan; six dead in Gujranwala; rescue operation in progress in southern Punjab

By our correspondents
July 27, 2015
PESHAWAR/LAHORE/BAHAWALPUR: Half of Peshawar city was inundated as flood water entered residential areas after heavy rains on Sunday as thousands of inhabitants of the city were stranded and trapped while train services were also disrupted.
The early morning rain in the upper parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Peshawar valley and some tribal areas caused flooding in the Budhni nullah in the afternoon. The floodwater entered houses in Budhni, Qazi Killay, Lakhkar Killay and some other localities on the banks of the nullah located on Charsadda Road.
Hundreds of families were moved to safer places after floodwater entered localities along the Budhni stream while Rescue 1122 workers saved around 50 marooned families in the area.
The villagers and others living in the outskirts of Peshawar had already been advised to vacate their homes as more rains were expected in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the adjacent tribal areas.
The Met Office said the provincial capital received 30 millimetre (mm) rain, while 119mm rain was recorded in Cherat, 70mm in Risalpur and some other parts of Nowshera district.The Rescue 1122 workers, equipped with boats and life jackets, rushed to the flooded localities along the stream and shifted many residents to safety.
The Charsadda Road remained closed for traffic for some time at the Budhni Bridge as the floodwater overflowed the old bridge used by the traffic.However, after the rain stopped and the water level dropped, the crossing was reopened.
Three persons were killed and many injured as flood-rain devastations continued in various parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Sunday.A number of houses, standing crops and orchards were also destroyed in various areas of the province.
Two women died and hundreds of houses were destroyed in rain-related incidents in Mansehra and Kohistan districts. A woman was reportedly swept away by flood in the Ichrian area of Mansehra district and search for her body was under way, a resident said.
Another woman died of cardiac arrest after her belongings were swept away by floodwater in Kohistan. “Crops have been destroyed in most areas of the district,” the DeputyCommissioner, Mansehra, Amir Khattak, told reporters.He added that the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad road was reopened and hundreds of tourists, who had been stranded following a landslide in the Kaghan valley, were sent back to their respective destinations.
In Oghi, the entire bazaar was inundated due to the overflowing of the Saror nullah and traders suffered huge financial losses. Also, the floodwater damaged six houses in Oghi bazaar.
In Kohistan district, dozens of houses were destroyed due to the rains. The floods inundated Suo, Dirgutto and Chardong villages and washed away dozens of houses.On the other hand, as unprecedented floods have played havoc with the lives, properties and infrastructure in Chitral, the people in the affected villages have started rebuilding the destroyed water channels and other facilities on a self-help basis.
While the Kalash Valley remained cut off from the rest of the country because of continuous flood in the Ayun Gol area, the dwellers of Bamburet, one of the Kalash Valley’s main villages, demonstrated how communities could fight back, if given help.
Chitral is fortunate to have some of the better known non-governmental organisations working there. “About 450 community members joined hands to restore the channel of the micro-hydel powerhouse at Sarujalik on day one of the devastation caused by the flood and while 300 people reported on the second day,” said an official of the Sarhad Rural Support Programme (SRSP).
They constructed a 450 feet new earthen channel and installed 14 electric poles with transmission lines in just two days, he added.While at Bamburet Payeen, about 150 community members have been working for the last four days to reconstruct the 150 feet channel and installation of 10 poles with transmission lines.
A massive rescue and relief operation is under way for the people marooned in the raging waves of the flash flood that has hit a big swathe of Chitral for the last ten days, killing 31 people, washing away their homes, with no immediate break in sight from the torrential rains.
Military helicopters are hovering over the flood-ravaged villages to pluck the affected people and drop food to them as the local authorities are engaged in setting up makeshift shelters and food huts to provide them the basic provisions of life.
C-130 aircraft have been flown to the area to take food on an emergency basis.Meanwhile, 16 tons foodstuff from the Utility Stores in Gilgit have been transported to Mastung and Booni while more supply is in the pipeline, said the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah expressed deep sorrow over the life and property losses caused by the devastating torrential rains in Chitral and announced a donation of Rs50 million for relief and rescue works for the locals.
Meanwhile, low-lying areas of Kohat were inundated after a heavy downpour as rainwater entered houses in various localities of the city. Flash flood in nullahs at various spots forced the closure Shakardara-Kohat Road for traffic. A similar situation was witnessed in the Kulachi area of DI Khan as the southern parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa experienced torrential rains.
As rains and flood continued to hit various parts of the country, six deaths were reported from Gujranwala on Sunday.Two-year-old Ismail and his sister Haram were killed when the roof of their house collapsed due to heavy rain at Krishan Nagar. Two boys Khurram and Nauman were also killed in a similar incident. Also a man and his son were electrocuted in the Kamoke area of the district.
In Hafizabad, a bridge on the Qadirabad Canal collapsed near Sagar village, cutting off more than 20 villages from the city. The bridge constructed about 100 years ago was in a dilapidated condition and collapsed during heavy rain.
Officials in Rahim Yar Khan said 38,745 people had so far been evacuated from flood-hit areas and shifted to safer places with 20 flood relief camps set up in the riverbed areas. They said standing crops on more than 50,000 acres of land had been damaged and over 45,000 people effected in 112 villages.
The Pakistan Army (Multan Corps) has rescued 8,946 people from the flood-affected areas to safer places during its rescue operation in southern Punjab.
A spokesman of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said relief activities were in progress in the flood-hit districts of Mianwali, Bhakkar, Rahim Yar Khan, Dera Ghazi Khan, Muzaffargarh, Layyah and Rajanpur. For this purpose, a total of 136 relief camps have so far been established in the province.
The administration is on high alert in Rawalpindi amid the threat of flood in Nullah Leh.According to the Met Office, an active monsoon weather system is affecting upper catchments of River Indus. This weather activity may cause medium to high flood at Tarbela (upstream) ranging between 490,000 to 550,000 cusecs during the next 24 hours. The Met office has asked the authorities concerned to take precautionary measures to avert any incident.
On the other hand, the River Indus at Chashma, Taunsa, Guddu and Sukkur and River Kabul at Nowshera were in medium flood on Sunday. The Indus at Tarbela, Kalabagh, River Chenab at Marala and River Ravi at Sidhnai were in low flood.
During the next 24 hours, fairly widespread thunderstorms/rain with isolated heavy showers are expected over Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata.Scattered thunderstorms/rain of moderate intensity with isolated heavy falls are expected in Sindh and the upper catchments of all the major rivers along with Punjab and northeast Balochistan. Rainfall of moderate intensity with isolated heavy falls is also expected over the hill torrents of DG Khan Division.
Owing to incessant rains, the flow in the river Sutlej at Ganda Singh Wala is likely to increase. Medium flood situation is expected in various nullahs - Bhimber, Palku, Aik, Deg and Bein.Strong monsoon currents are likely to penetrate into the upper parts of Pakistan during next 3-4 days that may interact with the westerly wave over upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Strong monsoon currents are likely to penetrate southern parts of the country from Monday to Thursday. Widespread rains with scattered heavy at times very heavy falls is expected in Sindh (Sukkur, Larkana, Karachi, Hyderabad and Mirpurkhas divisions), southern Punjab (DG Khan, Multan and Bahawalpur divisions), eastern Balochistan (Zhob, Sibi and Nasirabad divisions) and southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (DI Khan Division) during Monday to Thursday.
Meanwhile, the NDMA has reported that as many as 50 people have been killed and 773 houses wiped away by floods across the country.
According to the report issued by the National Disaster Management Authority on Sunday, 26 people have been killed in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP), five in Punjab, seven in Balochistan and 12 people have been killed in Gilgit-Baltistan.
According to the NDMA report, as many as 350 houses were destroyed in KP, 422 in Punjab and 101 in Balochistan by floods.A total of 113 relief centers have been set-up in KP, 105 in Punjab and other parts of the country.