Heavy rains triggers urban flooding alert

Relentless monsoon rains continue to raise river water levels, posing threats to communities in Punjab and adjoining regions.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) announced on Tuesday that the Ravi River at Jassar had reached a high flood level. The radar system in Sialkot detected heavy to very heavy rainfall in the river's catchments upstream and downstream of India's Thein Dam as well as in connected streams during the previous 12 hours. Additional inflows from India's Madhopur Headworks could push water levels into "very high to exceptionally high flood" levels at Jassar, Shahdara and Balloki within the next 48 hours, officials warned.

A day earlier, the PMD had cautioned of rising levels in both the Ravi and Chenab rivers. It attributed the surge to a monsoon low over northern Rajasthan combined with a westerly wave over Kashmir, which has intensified rainfall across the catchments of eastern rivers.

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) separately warned of urban flooding in low-lying areas of Lahore, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Narowal, Kasur and other Punjab districts over the next 24 hours. The agency urged residents to avoid unnecessary travel, stay away from rivers and streams, and follow official alerts disseminated via then media, mobile networks and the NDMA disaster alert application.

In Punjab, cities including Narowal, Sialkot, Gujrat, Jhelum, Mandi Bahauddin, Gujranwala and Lahore face risks of urban flooding and overflowing tributaries. Officials also warned that heavy rainfall, windstorms and lightning may damage vulnerable structures such as mud houses, electric poles, billboards, vehicles and solar panels.

According to the PMD, strong monsoon currents from the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea are continuing to penetrate northeastern Punjab and Kashmir.

Widespread rain, wind and thunderstorms were expected in northeastern Punjab, with isolated activity in South Punjab. Heavy falls are likely in northeastern Punjab.

During the past 24 hours, exceptionally heavy rainfall was recorded in Sialkot — 228 millimetres in the city and 97mm at the airport — along with 107mm in Narowal, 61mm in Lahore city, 39mm at Lahore airport. Kasur received 42mm, while Gujranwala and Gujrat each recorded 35mm and Hafizabad 2mm of rainfall.

The Lahore district administration also issued a high alert in anticipation of rising water levels in Ravi River over the next 48 hours.