Bane of the poor: Four die in rain-induced incidents in Rawalpindi

Heavy downpour disrupts flights, inundates low lying areas


A home that collapsed after rains in Gujar Khan. PHOTO: ASAD MALIK/EXPRESS

RAWALPINDI:


Three members of a family, including two children, died when the roof of their house caved in due to incessant rain in Gujar Khan tehsil of Rawalpindi district in the small hours of Sunday.


The family hailed from Afghanistan and was temporarily living in Dhok Bengali village near Mandra. The incident took place around 4am.

The victims were identified as 26-year-old Kareema Bibi, and her six-year-old son Kamran Khan and four-year-old daughter Naghma.

Local residents had pulled out the bodies from the rubble before Rescue 1122 teams reached the village.

The bodies were taken to Gujar Khan Tehsil Headquarters Hospital.

Girl drowns in overflowing nullah

Meanwhile, a six-year-old girl drowned in a drain in Salmanabad area of Westridge. The victim was identified as Haleema. The rain had flooded the nullah.

The rain continued for the third consecutive day in Rawalpindi, Islamabad and adjoining districts.

The amount of rainfall was recorded 57 millimetres (mm) at Shamsabad, 36mm at Chaklala, 63mm at Saidpur, 49mm at Zero Point, 39mm at Golra, 48mm at Murree, 30mm at Mangla, 26mm at Jhelum, and 18mm at Chakwal on Sunday.

Streets flooded

Many roads and streets in low-lying areas of Rawalpindi were inundated by rainwater. Rawal Road, Saidpur Road, and Jamia Masjid Road were also affected.

Teams of the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) and Solid Waste Management Company worked throughout the day to clear drains.

WASA spokesperson Umer Farooq said the agency had cleared many roads and streets submerged by rainwater.

Flight operations affected

Rain has also affected the flight operations at the Benazir Bhutto International Airport (BBIA). Over the last three days, a total of 23 flights were delayed due to rain while two were cancelled.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 14th, 2016.

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