Boats become lifeline in flood evacuation drive

Boats manned by trained Rescue 1122 personnel have become the backbone of Punjab's flood evacuation operations, saving millions of lives across the province.

According to Rescue 1122 spokesperson Farooq Ahmed, 1,517 boats equipped with trained staff are continuously engaged in rescue missions. "In the last 24 hours alone, 14,247 people were evacuated from flood-hit areas," he said.

Multan currently leads with 211 boats in service, followed by 174 in Muzaffargarh and 102 in Rahim Yar Khan.

In the past 24 hours, 3,274 people were rescued in Multan, 2,392 in Muzaffargarh, and 414 in Rahim Yar Khan.

Ahmed said coordinated efforts by provincial departments have so far resulted in the evacuation of over 362,000 people from Multan, 143,000 from Muzaffargarh, and 53,000 from Rahim Yar Khan. More than 543,000 animals have also been shifted to safer locations.

Other districts have seen extensive operations as well. In the last 24 hours alone, 1,832 people were rescued from Lodhran, 1,531 from Bahawalpur, 608 from Bahawalnagar, 586 from Toba Tek Singh, and 513 from Vehari. More than 1,000 were rescued from Pakpattan, 643 from Okara, and 478 from districts including Hafizabad, Jhang, Khanewal, Narowal, and Nankana Sahib.