Met department predicts more rainfall for upper regions

The Meteorological Department predicted more rainfall in the upper regions of the country on Saturday.

According to Express News, the met department has identified Azad Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Murree and Chakwal as areas to receive heavy rainfall tonight till Tuesday.

Attock, Jhelum, Sialkot, Narowal, Lahore and Gujranwala are also to receive heavy rainfall during this period.

Several parts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa also have a rain forecast for Sunday, that will last till Monday. These areas include Dir, Kohistan, Abbottabad, Mansehra and Haripur.

The prediction comes at a time when the country is alreay grappling with a near unprecedented scale of devastation wrought by the monsoon rains and floods. At least 1,265 people have so far died, thousands have been injured and millions displaced.

K-P told to take pre-emptive measures

Rainfall in K-P areas is expected to continue intermittently till Wednesday, the met department said.

In light of the prediction and the current dire situation of the province, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has issued a letter to the district administration, asking them to take pre-emptive measures.

Read Fresh flood swamps what previous deluge spared

The director general of the PDMA has instructed authorities to ensure the availability of small as well as heavy earth-moving machinery in cases of land sliding.

Furthermore, there was also fear of urban flooding in some areas as well as an increase in flow of storm water drains due to the rains.
The DG PDMA has reportedly cautioned tourists, directing them to take precautionary measures while travelling. He further stated that the emergency operation centre was also fully functional now.

Flood losses

The economic losses from the floods have estimated to be around Rs2.5 trillion or over $11 billion, sources told Express Tribune.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that the recent floods caused more damage than the 2010 calamity. Due to the 2010 super floods, the economic growth rate had slowed down by 2% and the economic losses had been estimated at $9.7 billion.

The floods have also caused supply chain-related issues and the Ministry of Finance has estimated that the inflation rate may soar to 26%, compared to the budget target of 11.5%.