After the storm

The storm that ripped across K-P, twin cities on June 1 was one of the most powerful that residents had ever seen

The storm that ripped across Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Islamabad and Rawalpindi on the early evening of June 1 was one of the most powerful that residents reportedly had ever seen. Hundreds of trees, billboards and other vulnerable infrastructure came down. Poorly built walls collapsed. Well-built and modern windows of multi-storey buildings were blown in. A bus was overturned near the Kulsoom Hospital in Islamabad. Flights at the Benazir International Airport were suspended until the wind slackened. Cars were crushed by falling debris. By the time the winds abated — and they were recorded at 148kmph in Islamabad and 120kmph in Rawalpindi at their height — at least 15 were dead and 125 had been injured, both figures that may rise. The dead were mostly the result of roof collapses and damage to property and infrastructure is yet to be assessed but it will be considerable. The duration of the windstorm was also unusual at 25-30 minutes — they usually blow themselves out in 10-15 minutes — and this may be a harbinger of future storms of severity.

The storm was a natural event, and by no means uncommon generally but uncommon in its power. As with most events such as this, nationally there were same consequences — collapsed roofs, electricity pylons, trees and particularly advertising hoardings, all coming down bringing their own collateral damage with them. Islamabad residents were quick to point fingers at the Capital Development Authority (CDA) for not pruning the trees which were in full leaf and thus at increased vulnerability. Some damage is inevitable but equally preparedness can and does mitigate the damage. The point residents make about tree pruning is a case in point, it ought to be part of ‘good housekeeping’ with the CDA as Islamabad is a city thick with trees notwithstanding the efforts of developers. Billboards collapsing is another. Some are huge and situated atop buildings, at junctions and adjacent to areas where people will congregate to shop or eat. That so many collapse is testament to both poor construction and poor regulation. Storms cannot be prevented or predicted with absolute certainty, but we can be better protected from their effects than is currently the case.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 3^rd, 2016.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.