Rain exposes vulnerabilities

RAWALPINDI:

Heavy rainfall on Friday flooded low-lying areas across Rawalpindi, with water accumulating up to one foot deep on roads, including major VIP routes.

For the first time, spring rains caused water to enter homes in inner-city areas, triggering fears of severe flooding during the upcoming monsoon season.

Metro bus stations and old court buildings at the district courts experienced roof leakage, while continuous rain made the weather pleasant and overcast conditions turned day into dusk-like scenes.

Water levels in Rawal, Simly, and Khanpur dams rose, and groundwater levels also improved. Rainwater flow cleaned Leh Nullah and 15 other storm drains, washing away accumulated garbage.

However, foul water entered low-lying neighbourhoods, damaging household items. Underpasses across the city remained submerged for hours, exposing the failure of WASA's drainage arrangements.

Areas including Javed Colony, Nadeem Colony, Fazalabad, Arya Mohalla, Dhoke Elahi Bakhsh, Fauji Colony, Chah Sultan, Glass Factory, and Sharon Colony remained flooded throughout the day.