KKH closed for traffic due to landslide near Hassanabad.

 

ISLAMABAD/LAHORE/BAHAWALNAGAR.JHANG  -  Prime Minister Sheh­baz Sharif Monday di­rected the authorities to make foolproof ar­rangements to handle the possible flood sit­uation in Ravi, Chenab and Sutlej rivers.

The PM also directed them to get prepared for timely and safe evacuation and create awareness among the people in the potential­ly affected areas. The prime minister appre­ciated the Rangers and Rescue 1122 person­nel for the timely evac­uation and assistance of the people trapped in flood water in Shakar­garh. He said the time­ly relief actions by the Rangers and Rescue helped save dozens of people including wom­en and children. 

"I along with the whole nation pay trib­utes to the country's dutiful personnel", he remarked.

In light of the Met de­partment’s forecast of heavy rain, the PDMA on Monday has cau­tioned all districts con­nected to Ravi River to remain alert for emer­gency situation in wake of flood and rains which is likely in Lahore, Gu­jranwala, Sialkot, Narowal, Si­alkot Jhelum, Rawalpindi, At­tock and Chakwal.

The PDMA has issued an ‘alert’ in the slum and encroachment ar­eas across the Ravi River and ad­jacent low-lying areas susceptible to urban flooding, in the provin­cial metropolis on Monday. 

In this connection, various for­mations have carried out mock ex­ercises to rescue citizens trapped in flooded areas, Lahore Commis­sioner Office sources said.

Under the directions of Lahore Commissioner Muhammad Ali Randhawa, the authorities con­cerned have removed all en­croachments and slums under the River Ravi bridges immediately in the wake of possible floods.

The residents living in the vicin­ity of Ravi River and low lying ar­eas have begun making evacuation arrangements. The residents have also been advised to take their valuables along with them to safer locations. The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) on Monday issued a fresh warning regarding the possibility of floods in River Ravi after India released approximately 185,000 cusecs of water from the Ujh Barrage.

Earlier, on Friday, about 14,000 cusecs of water was flowing in River Ravi, the official said, adding that there was normal flow in the river with the water flowing be­low the bridges.

According to experts from Ir­rigation Department and Flood Management, if water level reaches up to 80,000 cusecs, it can lead to some serious dam­age, but the current flow of wa­ter is within safe limits.

Rescue 1122 and Civil Defense teams were equipped with boats and life jackets.

A flood control room has been set up in district administra­tion office, which includes rep­resentatives of civil defence and PDMA, the sources informed.

The preparations come as the provincial capital was bat­tered by rains on last Wednes­day, with water several feet high accumulating in multiple areas. 

It also resulted in at least six casualties. Last month, over two dozen people died in Pun­jab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Meanwhile, the memories of last year’s floods are still fresh. Pakistan recorded its wettest July in over sixty years, with the country receiving three-times the rainfall.

‘WATER LEVEL INCREASES IN SUTLEJ RIVER’

After release by India, water lev­el in Sutlej river is continuous­ly increasing, and it was record­ed 16 feet at Head Ganda Singh, near here on Monday. According to the Bahawalnagar district ad­ministration, all arrangements had been made to deal with any emergency situation due to ex­pected flooding in the river. 

A spokesperson for the district administration said that water level at Head Ganda Singh had increased from 13 feet to 16 feet during the past 12 hours. At the head works, water release in­creased from 7,741 cusecs to 22,341cusecs on Monday. At Head Sulemanki, the upstream water level was recorded at 22,283 cusecs, and downstream 11,496 cusecs. The district ad­ministration has put all relevant departments on high alert in the wake of expected flood-like situ­ation in River Sutlej.

RIVER CHENAB FLOWS IN MEDIUM FLOOD: FFC

The Federal Flood Commis­sion (FFC) on Monday said that heavy rainfall in the catchment areas of River Chenab has re­sulted in flooding situation at its various control structures and it was running in “medium flood” in its reaches “Marala-Khan­ki-Qadirabad”. 

According to daily FFC report, all other major rivers of Indus River System (IRS) were flowing under “normal flow condition”. Medium to high level flooding in river Ravi at Jassar (Ist Con­trol Station in Pakistan on Riv­er Ravi) and medium level flood­ing in its other Nullahs during the next 24 hours. Present combined live storage of the country’s ma­jor reservoirs (Tarbela, Mangla & Chashma) is 8.279 MAF Vs 2.817 MAF of last year at the same date against total value of 13.443 MAF.

‘EXPECTED FLOODING IN JHANG’

Deputy Commissioner (DC) Abdullah Khurram Niazi in view of expected floods, visited dif­ferent areas including Moza Jogera, Kharora Baqir and di­rected villagers to shift to safe places for security. 

Moreover, announcements were made on loudspeakers of mosques warning the resident of low-lying areas with their an­imals for their safety. DC visited Flood Relief Camps along with of­ficers of district administration. 

Talking to the people gath­ered there, the Deputy Commis­sioner informed that 18 flood relief camps had set up in dif­ferent areas of the district. He said all possible arrangements had been finalized in view of ex­pected floods in rivers. The con­cerned officers had been ap­pointed at relief camps with all possible facilities for the affect­ed people. It may be noted that two Rivers Jhelum and Chenab join at the place of Trimu Head Works in Jhang district and peo­ple were affected every year ac­cording to the level of floods.

KKH CLOSED FOR TRAFFIC NEAR HASSANABAD DUE TO LANDSLIDE

Karakoram Highway is closed for traffic near Hassanabad due to landslides. A Spokesman of the National Highway Author­ity( NHA) said on Monday that necessary machinery has been delivered, and the road is be­ing opened. He said that N-35 is closed for all types of traffic near Nasirabad due to landslides. He asked the citizens traveling on the highway to start their jour­ney after getting the necessary information.