Potential floods: WASA on high alert as downpour continues

Twin cities face massive traffic jams; water accumulates at several localities

RAWALPINDI/ ISLAMABAD: Staff of the Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) has been put on high alert at various vulnerable points to cope with any emergency situation in the garrison city in light of the relentless rain.

Wasa spokesperson Muhammad Umar Farooq told The Express Tribune that the agency has deployed staff at several points to ensure proper drainage of rain water.

Officials have been visiting different areas to monitor water levels after the onset of rains since the last couple of days, he said, adding that suction vehicles and dewatering and jetting vans were busy draining water from different areas.

Vulnerable points of the city, including Liaqat Road, Waris Khan Road, Rehman abad, New Town stop, Teepu road, Saidpur near Muslim High School, Sadiqabad and Data Gunj Bakhsh road need to be monitored closely, said Farooq.

He said by 6pm on Thursday, 52 millimetres of rain was recorded near the Rawalpindi Medical College while the basin water level was recorded at 6.17 feet at Katarian Bridge.

Residents of Rawalpindi faced severe traffic jams and other difficulties due to accumulation of water on Benazir Bhutto Road, Mall Road, IJP Road, Airport road and the Islamabad Expressway. Meanwhile, a dumper truck turned upside down and plunged into a ravine on IJP Road near Kacha stop and caught fire due to the rain. No loss of life was reported in the incident.

Rainwater threatens to inundate several low-lying areas of the city, including Gawalmandi, Katarian, Javed Colony, Dhoke Ratta, Ganj Mandi, Alnoor Colony and Kartaar Pura.

Rawalpindi District Coordination Officer Sajid Zafar Dal told The Express Tribune that the government of Punjab had constituted a committee comprising some MPAs and other civic agency heads under the chairmanship of Punjab Minister for Labour and Manpower Raja Ishfaq Sarwar to cope with all emergency situations.

Sarwar visited several flood-prone areas of Rawalpindi to assess and review arrangements on Thursday.

The minister expressed satisfaction about the drainage of rainwater from low-lying areas and directed Wasa to remain alert and be prepared to confront any kind of emergency.

Sarwar also instructed DCOs of Attock, Jhelum and Chakwal to raise the threat level and prepare for potential floods.

Drenched capital

In the capital, traffic jams were reported on Sufi Tabassum Road, H-8, Margalla Road, Zero Point, G-8 Markaz, and Faizabad. Talking to The Express Tribune, an official of the Islamabad Traffic Police said the majority of traffic signals at main roads stop working and the traffic wardens have to control traffic manually.

He said due to the ongoing construction work in the capital, alternative routes are not ‘heavy traffic friendly’ as they are congested and lack the capacity to accommodate a heavy flow of traffic.

Moreover, he said the containers brought to block the Azadi and Inqilab marches are still lying on the roads and create difficulties for commuters.

Dr Ghulam Rasul, chief meteorologist at the Met Office, informed The Express Tribune that it is expected that showers would continue for the next 48 hours and further bring down the temperature at night. He said 55mm of rain was recorded at Zero Point on Thursday evening.

According to Rana Bilal, the sub-divisional officer at Rawal Dam, in view of increased rain forecast, spillways were opened late Thursday night to discharge excessive water.

ICT dispatches relief goods

The Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Administration has dispatched relief and rescue teams headed by magistrates to low-lying and catchment areas after the heavy downpour which has increased water level at Simly and Rawal dams.

Rescue teams consisting of civil defence volunteers and police will provide help to the affected people in the areas, including Korang Town, Azeem Town and Sihala in the wake of the torrential monsoon rains in the city, said an ICT official. The official said the administration will announce to set up a control room within 24 hours for maintaining effective coordination with the relevant departments and they have been alerted to cope with any flood situation.

Rescue 1122, too, on red alert

The Punjab emergency rescue service, Rescue 1122, has been placed on high alert as well to cope with possible floods in Nullah Leh. According to a Rescue 1122 official, the rescue staff would be on standby to provide timely emergency response, medical treatment and transportation facilities to possible flood victims in low-lying areas.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, September 5^th, 2014.