Five injured as house roofs collapse amid rain

Monsoon spell expected to continue till Thursday

LAHORE:

At least five people, including a woman, were injured when roofs of three dilapidated houses collapsed due to heavy rainfall in different areas of Lahore.

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif directed all institutions to remain on high alert in view of torrential rains across the province.

She directed WASA, PDMA, local governments, Rescue 1122 and traffic police officials to remain in the field to oversee relief and other activities. She directed the administration and WASA officers to conduct monitoring in the field.

She also directed the commissioners and deputy commissioners to continuously monitor drainage of water from the low-lying areas.

The chief minister directed the traffic police to issue a comprehensive traffic plan and timely inform the citizens about alternative routes. She also directed the administration to promptly redress all the problems faced by the citizens due to stagnant rainwater.

One of the incidents occurred at Shah Kam Chowk in Chung, where the roof of a house made of wooden beams and mud collapsed. A 47-year-old woman, Saira Shahzad, was severely injured after being trapped under the debris. Rescue 1122 teams reached evacuated the injured woman from the rubble and shifted her to a hospital.

In another incident on Qatarband Road, three people were severely injured when the deteriorated roof of a house collapsed, trapping them under the debris. Rescue personnel evacuated them and transported them to a hospital.

The third incident occurred in Gopayrah Thokar village, where one person was severely injured after being trapped under debris when a house roof collapsed. Rescue teams shifted the injured person to a hospital.

As per a damage assessment report released by the Punjab Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) on Tuesday following heavy monsoon rains over the past 24 hours in various districts, collapse of dilapidated and poorly maintained houses left at least seven people dead and seven others injured.

Three children drowned while swimming during the rain in Kallar Syedan.