Rainy spell beginning today

Islamabad : If the Pakistan Meteorological Department is to be believed, a rainy spell will begin in Islamabad and Rawalpindi today (Wednesday).

According to an official of the Met Office, a westerly wave, which entered the country's western parts on Tuesday night, will grip different areas on Wednesday and will persist in upper parts until Thursday.

"Under the influence of the new weather system, widespread rain-thunderstorm with few moderate to isolated heavy rainfall is expected in Islamabad, upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Malakand, Hazara, Peshawar, Kohat and Mardan divisions, upper Punjab's Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Sargodha, Lahore and Faisalabad divisions, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir from Wednesday to Thursday night, while snow will fall on hills in Malakand division's Swat, Chitral, Kalam, Malamjabba and upper Dir areas, Hazara division, Murree, Galiyat, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan during the period," he said.

The weatherman said rain coupled with thunderstorm was expected at scattered places of lower Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Bannu and DI Khan divisions and southern Punjab's Multan, Bahawalpur, DG Khan and Sahiwal divisions on Wednesday or Thursday.

He added that rains with snowfall over the hills would fall at scattered places in Balochistan's Quetta, Zhob, Kalat, Makran, Naseerabad and Sibi divisions, Sindh's Sukkur, Larkana, Shaheed Benazirabad, Hyderabad and Karachi divisions on Wednesday.

The official warned that moderate-to-heavy rainfall could trigger landslides in Malakand and Hazara divisions, Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir from Wednesday to Thursday.