ISLAMABAD: The Punjab Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) announced on Wednesday that it has set up relief camps in the province’s flood-prone areas, as monsoon rains continue to lash various cities in eastern Pakistan.
The PDMA spokesperson said rainfall was recorded in Punjab’s Bahawalpur, Rawalpindi, Sheikhupura, Lahore, Joharabad, Attock, Chakwal, Faisalabad, Sialkot and Okara districts of during the last 24 hours.
“PDMA has established flood relief camps in the respective areas given possible flood risk,” Director General PDMA Irfan Ali Kathia said, adding that the current spell of monsoon rains in Punjab is expected to continue till July 25.
“Arrangements are complete because of flood risk in vulnerable districts.”
Heavy monsoon rains have lashed Punjab and Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provinces this week. At least 24 people were killed and 80 injured in Punjab this month as heavy rains lashed many parts of the province, according to official figures.
Highlighting that heavy rains could trigger flash floods that could pass through the Sulaiman Mountains in Pakistan, Kathia said the PDMA’s control room and district emergency operation centers were monitoring the situation 24/7.
He warned people against touching electric wires and poles and advised them against traveling unnecessarily in bad weather. He requested them to undertake preventive measures during the monsoon season.
Kathia said the water flow in all rivers and barrages of Punjab was at the normal level, highlighting that the level of water in Mangla Dam remains at 56 percent and Tarbela at 68 percent. The water levels in the Indian dams on rivers Sutlej and Ravi were up to 37 percent.
Pakistan is recognized as one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change effects. Unusually heavy rains in June 2022 triggered flash floods in many parts of the country, killing over 1,700 people, inflicting losses of around $30 billion, and affecting at least 30 million people.
