Punjab rivers recede as floodwaters head to Sindh

LAHORE: After claiming 50 lives and displacing thousands, floodwaters in Punjab’s rivers have begun to recede, with flows declining in the Sutlej, Chenab and Ravi. Floodwaters are now expected to enter Sindh from Saturday.

According to the Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), 43 deaths were reported in Gujrat and Gujranwala divisions, five in Faisalabad and one each in Lahore and Sargodha.

Water flow has also decreased at Head Islam and Sulemanki.

PDMA Director General Irfan Ali Kathia said no fresh water release had been reported from India, and water levels in Punjab’s rivers would gradually continue to fall. He added that the flood situation in Multan remained under control.

Kathia warned that a high flood wave would hit Shershah Bund, with 700,000 to 800,000 cusecs of water expected to enter Sindh on the afternoon of September 8.

Villages inundated as Chenab, Sutlej face high floods

He announced that families of those who lost their lives in the floods would receive financial assistance of Rs1 million each. A breach in a Gujrat drain had caused urban flooding, for which funds and machinery had been dispatched from Lahore and Rawalpindi. Conditions there are expected to improve within 12 to 18 hours, he said.

The PDMA chief said rainfall was forecast in different divisions, but no new river alert had been issued in the past 18 to 22 hours. The Sutlej has seen declining flows for the past 24 hours, with inflows at Harike falling from 300,000 to 200,000 cusecs. Water levels have also dropped at Ganda Singh, Jassar and Shahdara.

Relief efforts are under way, with flood victims provided “clinic-on-wheels” and “clinic-on-boat” facilities. So far, 2 million people have been rescued, according to the PDMA.

Heavy rains forecast in Sindh

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall across Sindh over the next 72 hours.

The advisory said Sukkur, Mirpurkhas and Shaheed Benazirabad divisions were likely to receive widespread showers with thunderstorms in the next 24 hours, with chances of heavy to very heavy downpours at some places.

The Met Office warned of possible urban flooding in major Sindh cities between September 7 and 9.

Sindh gears up for floods

Sindh’s Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon said fluctuations in water levels at the province’s dams and barrages continued, and the provincial government was on high alert to protect lives and property.

He said inflows and outflows at Panjnad Barrage stood at 306,740 cusecs, while 12,499 people had been evacuated from katcha areas over the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of evacuees to 121,769.

Memon said 5,848 people received medical assistance in the past 24 hours at 155 fixed and mobile health camps set up by the Sindh government. So far, 33,803 people have been treated.

He said 14,495 animals were shifted to safer places in the past 24 hours, while a total of 360,777 had been relocated due to flood threats. Another 64,487 animals were vaccinated or treated in the past day, taking the total to 820,811.

According to Memon, water inflows and outflows were recorded at 412,992 cusecs at Trimmu Barrage, 238,312 and 224,872 cusecs at Taunsa Barrage, 360,976 and 325,046 cusecs at Guddu Barrage, and 329,648 and 278,398 cusecs at Sukkur Barrage, respectively.

At Kotri Barrage, inflows stood at 237,922 cusecs and outflows at 215,667 cusecs. He noted that Tarbela Dam had reached 100 per cent capacity and Mangla Dam 87 per cent, while water levels had also risen in Khanpur, Rawal and Simly dams.

Memon said medium-level flooding was being observed at Khanki, Qadirabad, Panjnad, Islam and Mailsi siphon, while Guddu, Sukkur and Kotri were experiencing low-level flooding. The Sindh government had intensified rescue and relief operations through PDMA and other relevant departments.