Heavy rains, snowfall forecast for winter season

Islamabad: Promising chillier days ahead, the Pakistan Meteorological Department has forecast the above-normal rainfall during the Dec-Feb winter season.

According to the PMD report on 'Outlook for Winter Precipitation 2019-20, the winter rainfall is expected to be above normal between December 2019 and February 2020 embedded with few heavy snowfall events in most of the north western and upper parts of the country.

"Positive precipitation anomalies are predicted for the western region and high altitudes of the country, while neutral-to-negative precipitation anomalies are expected to happen in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and its adjacent areas," it said, adding that normal precipitation is predicted for Sindh province, lower parts of Punjab and coastal areas of Balochistan.

The PMD forecast heavy snowfall and frost for the region during the winter season. "Positive temperature anomalies are likely to prevail over southern parts of the country, especially over southwest Balochistan during the season, while there are strong chances of below normal temperatures in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and upper parts of the country," it said, adding that the near-normal temperatures are expected for the central areas of the country. The PMD said the winter season was expected to be wetter due to above normal rainfall and more spells of the westerly weather system.

It added that the frequency of fog in plain areas could decrease due to rainfall spells and windy conditions.

The PMD said those weather systems would be helpful in rain-fed areas for healthier growth of crops. It said heavy snow over mountains would be beneficial for groundwater and summer runoff into the major water reservoirs.