Sun shines as westerly winds wash away smog

By Our Correspondent
November 18, 2024
People walk around a park amid heavy smoggy conditions in Lahore on November 17, 2024. — AFP
People walk around a park amid heavy smoggy conditions in Lahore on November 17, 2024. — AFP   

LAHORE : The provincial capital witnessed a sunny winter day with average AQI below 200 here on Sunday.

The morning was a surprise for most of the citizens who slept during a hazardous AQI touching around 1,000 but when they woke up the sky was clear. The sudden disappearance of the deadly smog happened due to the change in wind direction.

Earlier, the wind direction was from India towards Pakistan while on Sunday morning it was changed to North West and the wind speed varies between 10 km/h to 15 km/h. The westerly winds cleared the smog engulfed cities, which was already predicted by the Met office on November 13, 2024. With the change of the wind directions, the AQI of Delhi, India went to 720 and it came on top of the world’s top 10 most polluted cities while Lahore was pushed down to third position with an AQI of 177.

In Lahore, the AQI at The Mall (Shahrah-e-Quaid-i-Azam) was 145, Johar Town (154), Askari 10 (160), US Consulate in Lahore (167), Syed Maratib Ali Road (173), Revenue Employees Coop Housing Society (176), CERP Office (177), University of Management and Technology (178), Ghazi Road Interchange (184), WWF-PAKISTAN (189), Phase8-DHA (193), Pakistan Engineering Services (198) and Valencia Town (227).

Met officials predicted that the wind direction will remain North West for the next two days during which rain was also expected. They said continental air was prevailing over most parts of the country while the smog/shallow fog was likely to prevail at isolated plain areas of Punjab during night/morning.

Sunday’s minimum temperature was recorded at Leh where mercury dropped to -07°C while in Lahore, it was 13.8°C and maximum was 24.3°C.

Earlier, toxic smog and air pollution in City caused a significant increase in cough and breathing disorders, with hospitals reporting over 5,000 asthma cases last week. The surge in patients suffering from respiratory issues, skin problems, and eye irritation had overwhelmed medical facilities, despite the government’s efforts to tackle the smog.