Washed away: 14 dead, over two dozen injured in rain-related disasters

Chief minister directs Wasa to drain water in all low-lying areas.

LAHORE:

The rain on Friday was welcomed by many in the city, but it also wreaked havoc in many areas.

As many as 14 people died in houses that collapsed due to the rain. Over two dozen people were injured in rain-related incidents on Saturday.

Muhammad Abbas and his children Waseem and Kiran were killed and four people injured when the roof of his house on Kamahan Road, Nishtar Colony, collapsed due to heavy rain. Police said Abbas, a hawker by profession, and his family were asleep when the roof of the house caved in. The family were trapped under the debris. Rescuers later found Abbas and two of his children dead. under the rubble. They shifted the injured to General Hospital.

A three-storey house collapsed in Shahid Town near DHA, catching seven people in the rubble. Parveen, her daughters Iqra, Ismat and her grandson, six-month old Husnain, died. Those injured in the incident were extricated by Rescuer workers and taken to a hospital. Doctors said the condition of two of the injured men was critical.

The roof of a room in Singhpura collapsed on two brothers Kaath Khan and Faath Khan who were sleeping there. The brothers, both residents of Bannu, were trapped under the debris. They were taken to a hospital by Rescue workers. Kaath Khan succumbed to his injuries at the hospital. The two had worked as watchmen at a private security company in Lahore.

Three members of a family died when the roof a house near Gujrati Hotel on Ghazi Road collapsed. Rescue workers said a man and two women had been sleeping in the house when the incident took place. They were taken to General Hospital where they succumbed to their injuries.

Five people were caught beneath debris when a building in Ameen Society, near DHA Phase 5, collapsed. They were rushed to General Hospital where two men and a woman died. The remaining two were in a critical condition.

The third floor of a building collapsed in Ittefaq Colony, Chauhan Road, trapping six people under the debris. Rescuers took the injured to Shaikh Zayed Hospital.

Three people, at Jallo Mor and Shahpur Kanjran near Thokar by-pass were trapped and critically injured when roofs of their houses fell on them.  Two others were rescued after the roof of a house in Qasayoun Wali Gali near Walton Road collapsed. Another man received fatal injuries when the roof of his house near Shah Jamal Chowk collapsed. The injured were rushed to General, Mayo and Services Hospitals.

Widespread damage to electricity and telephone infrastructure was reported. Several billboards and trees were uprooted. Several areas were inundated. A small fire broke out in an air conditioner of the server room at the LDA office in Johar Town on Saturday. An LDA spokesman said the office equipment had not been damaged and there were no casualties.

Several residents of dilapidated houses in the city were dismayed by Met Office’s forecast of more rains in the coming days. Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif issued directions to the district administration and Wasa to drain rain water. He said all resources should be utilised to ensure immediate drainage of water in low-lying areas. He also directed MPAs to supervise drainage from water in their constituencies.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 16^th, 2013.