The met department has warned that heavy downpours may generate urban flash flooding in various cities including Rawalpindi between Saturday and Sunday. PHOTO: WASEEM NAZIR/EXPRESS
An eight-year old girl named Halima is believed to have drowned in a stream near IJP Road in the area of Westridge in the wake of heavy rainfall in Rawalpindi. Emergency workers from Rescue 1122 are searching for the body of the child till the filing of this report.
The second consecutive day of rain has crippled daily life in the garrison city, as Rawalpindi’s administrators have been kept on their toes preparing for potential emergencies. The rainfall has also inundated low-lying areas, and forced citizens to remain inside their homes. The continuous rain is also a cause of concern for district managers, as their ongoing anti-dengue campaign has badly been affected.
Speaking to The Express Tribune, Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) spokesperson Umer Farooq said the met office had reported 100 millimetres (mm) of rainfall in Rawalpindi on Saturday. He said there was 60 mm of rainfall on Friday. He added that there were reports that rain will continue till Monday.
Explaining the efforts of WASA in handling emergency-like situations during the rain, Farooq said WASA Managing Director Raja Shaukat Mahmood had been monitoring the situation and had set up four flood emergency offices at Moti Mahal, Liaqat Bagh, Bagh Sardaran, and at Khyaban-e-Sir Syed.
He said his office had continuously been monitoring the rainfall and flood situation at Nullah Leh. The official said the Leh had been flowing normally at a depth of six feet.
Farooq said WASA, in collaboration with the Solid Waste Management Company, had been cleaning all small and big drain streams in the city, and that WASA had been using all resources to drain water from low-lying areas.
Speaking about the positive effect of the rain, the official said that it was very good for underground water level. He said that the rain would recharge underground reservoirs. He noted that water at the Rawal Dam had reached to its full capacity of 1,752 feet, and that the authorities had to open the spillways of the Dam on Friday night.
The rain, on the other hand, had alarmed the city district government, that had been busy in its anti-dengue drive in Rawalpindi. Khawaja Salman Rafique, advisor to Punjab chief minister on health, presided over a meeting on Saturday on the ongoing drive.
An official of the district government, on condition of anonymity, said participants were concerned about the effect of the rain on the anti-dengue drive. He said that March was the season where dengue larva is born, and that the larva survives in fresh water. Rain water could lead to widespread growth of the larva, he added.
The advisor asked the city district government and all relevant departments to increase surveillance activity and clear rain water as soon as possible.
District Coordination Officer Sajid Zaffar was not immediately available for his comments.
Flash flood warning
The widespread rains which began on Friday morning swamped low-lying areas of the capital. The met department has also warned that heavy downpours may generate urban flash flooding in various cities including Rawalpindi between Saturday and Sunday.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 13th, 2016.
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