Heavy rainfall expected across country in next 24 to 48 hours

Climate Change Minister Senator Sherry Rehman on Sunday warned that heavy rains with thunderstorms were expected across Pakistan over the next 24 to 48 hours, urging people to remain cautious.

“Forecast of rain impacts in the 24-48 hours in Pakistan. The highest amount of rainfall will be in Punjab’s cities like Lahore, Narowal, Sialkot. Other provinces have been alerted too for heavy to moderate rain,” she wrote on her official Twitter account.

Sherry said that urban flooding alerts have been issued for cities and municipal areas with risks of landslides.

“Coordinated preparedness and proactive responses save lives, so all response teams, both public and NGOs in the affected areas need to stay vigilant, ready,” she added.

Meanwhile, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has released details of the recent rain-related casualties and damages across the nation.

According to the figures provided by the authority, during the past two weeks, 76 people lost their lives while 133 sustained injuries due to the torrential downpour.

Read more: Monsoon dumps more rain on city

It said that the most significant number of casualties were reported across Punjab province, with 48 fatalities.

The rainstorms resulted in various incidents claiming the lives of 20 people in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and five in Balochistan. Moreover, Punjab witnessed 86 injuries, while K-P reported 37.

Among the deceased, 31 were children, 30 were men, and 15 were women. The rainstorms also left 46 children, 49 men, and 38 women injured in different incidents.

Additionally, the heavy rainfall caused damage to 76 houses and killed over 44 cattle. The NDMA further reported that Punjab suffered damage to 32 houses, while K-P experienced damage to 46 residences.

India releases 185,000 cusecs of water

In another alert, NDMA issued an advisory to the local administration and masses along the Ravi River after India released around 185,000 cusecs of water from Ujh Barrage.

The NDMA in its flood update issued here, said as per the Permanent Commission on Indus Water (PCIW), India has released approximately 185,000 cusecs water from Ujh Barrage (River Ravi).

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As per the previous record, last year India had also released 173,000 cusecs and approximately one-third of the released water i.e. 60,000 cusecs reached Jassar causing a low flood level (gauging point on River Ravi).

Therefore as per the PCIW, considering the previous record around 65,000 cusecs is expected to reach within the next 20-24 hours. “Likely Impact: As per flood limits of River Ravi at Jassar, LOW FLOOD in the flood plain areas is expected,” the NDMA said.

As per the NDMA’s guidelines, local administration was vigilantly monitoring the situation till July 20th. Moreover, the public was advised to stay informed and follow guidelines from the relevant administration.

The summer monsoon brings South Asia 70-80% of its annual rainfall between June and September every year.

It is vital for the livelihoods of millions of farmers and food security in a region of around two billion people. But it also brings landslides and floods.

Last summer, unprecedented monsoon rains put a third of the country under water, damaging two million homes and killing more than 1,700 people.

Scientists said climate change was making seasonal rains heavier and more unpredictable.