Urban flooding in Lahore after rain breaks June record

LAHORE: Setting a new record, an unprecedented 260mm of rain in six hours caused urban flooding in Lahore on Monday.

The heavy rain continued for a total duration of 6 hours and 47 minutes. It started at 4:40 am and continued until 9:11 am. The stagnant rainwater at the 22 sore points of the city and the low-lying areas caused long queues of vehicles on almost every main road of the city and in some places, the citizens were struck in traffic for hours.

According to data collected from Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) the highest rain was recorded at the Airport where it was 260mm, at Lakshami Chowk 256mm, at Pani Wala Talab 254mm, Qurtaba Chowk 252mm, Gulshan-e-Ravi 236mm, Nishter Town 231mm, Iqbal Town 212mm, Tajpura 191mm, Johar Town 176mm, Jail Road 171.5, Mughalpura 165mm, Chowk Nakhuda 153mm, Gulberg 142mm, Farrukhabad 140mm, Samanabad 125mm and Upper Mall 121mm. The situation of the 22 sore points was also very crucial as there was a maximum pounding of 32 inches of rainwater at Bhatti Gate, Lakshmi Chowk 30 inches, Qurtaba Chowk 26 inches, Ichra 24 inches, GPO 18 inches, Tajpura, Chowk Nakhuda, Haji Camp and Nabha Road 16 inches each, Chauburji Chowk, Tikka Chowk Johar Town and Allahoo Chowk Johar Town 14 inches each, Jinnah Hospital, Lytton Road and Sheranwala Gate 12 inches each, Shah Jamal 11 inches, Eik Moria Pull 10 inches, Firdous Market 8 inches, Qainchi Stop Ferozpur Road 7 inches and Do Moria Pul 4 inches.

Ch Aslam, Director MET Lahore while talking with the scribe said so far the highest rain record in June was 224 mm in 2011. He predicted that Lahore’s record of rain in June may touch a new level as four days were still left in the month and there are chances of more rains on these days. He termed the present spell as the first and the last rainy spell of pre-monsoon and said the monsoon season will start from the 1st of July 2023. He said on Sunday last, the city also witnessed gusty winds, which blew over a speed of 130 while humidity also crossed 81 percent today.

Meanwhile, MET officials said seasonal low lies over northeast Balochistan while a westerly wave was also affecting upper and western parts of the country, Northeast Balochistan and adjoining areas. They predicted that dust-thunderstorm and rain were expected in Punjab, Islamabad, Pothohar region, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, northeast Balochistan, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. They said rainfall was particularly heavy in many cities including Sialkot, Jhelum, Gujrat, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Mangla, Kasur, Narowal, Mandi Bahauddin, Gujranwala, Chakwal, Murree, Attock, Hafizabad, D G Khan, Sargodha, Bhakkar, Rawalakot, Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Garhi Dupatta, Mardan, Bannu, Balakot, Kakul, Peshawar, Bacha Khan Airport, Cherat, Pattan, Dir, Malam Jabba, Saidu Sharif, D I Khan, Barkhan, Khuzdar, Zhob, Lasbella, Ormara and Samungli.

Following the unprecedented rainfall, WASA’s management under the supervision of Managing Director Ghafran Ahmed put extra effort to clear the roads and a majority of the sore points were cleared of the stagnant rainwater till the filing of this report. MD WASA Ghafran Ahmed also visited low-lying areas and inspected the drainage drive. He also checked the availability of de-watering pumps and other equipment and visited several disposal stations, which were kept active despite the power outage. Commissioner Lahore Muhammad Ali Randhawa along with MD WASA Ghafran Ahmed also toured the city during which MD Wasa Ghafran Ahmed briefed him about the post-rain drainage s. Commissioner Lahore instructed to speed up the drainage pumping drive. MD WASA said that the agency has been continuously participating in the post-rain drainage operations since last night and Chowk Nakhda, Cooper Road, Aik Morea and Two Morea Pul, Firdous Market, GPO Kashmir Road, Lakshmi Chowk, Lytton Road, Nabha Road, Bhatti Gate, Shah Jamal, Chauburji Chowk, Sheranwala Gate, Jinnah Hospital, Allah Ho Chowk and Tikka Chowk have been cleared till noon.

Meanwhile, caretaker Minister Housing Barrister Syed Azfar Ali Nasir also visited various localities and monitored the post-rain drainage operation and appreciated the efforts and readiness of WASA. Due to continuous rain in a short period, the staff was facing difficulty in removing water from the roads, said the provincial minister, adding that the drainage operation in the city will continue without break till the clearance of roads in city areas.

Monday’s rain also caused damage to the temporarily established sale points of sacrificial animals and a large number of sellers thronged the city roads. This gave a dirty look to mostly greenbelts or open plots in various city localities that were seen stocked with sacrificial animals. Monday’s highest maximum temperature was recorded at Dalbandin and Nokkundi where the mercury reached 48°C while in Lahore it was 29°C and the minimum was 17°C.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed concern over urban flooding in the provincial metropolis and directed the provincial government and district administration to take immediate action for the drainage of rainwater. In a statement here, the prime minister also instructed to mobilize the teams of all relevant institutions to counter the rainy situation. He said no laziness should be shown to save the citizens. Given the rainy situation, the Prime Minister instructed to make 24-hour monitoring with administrative measures for drainage arrangements and alternative routes for the flow of traffic. The prime minister directed security and advance arrangements in other areas of the country. He ordered provincial governments and the district administrations to work together for public relief.