Lahore:
Just like large expanses of the country continue to take place in torrential monsoon rains and the growing human toll they have made, the authorities have sounded that the alarm is coming out once again.
A new wave of monsoon, from July 20 to 25, is expected to beat several regions, with authorities warning strong precipitation, burst winds, dust storms and sudden potential floods in the coming days.
Most Punjab districts are expected to face stormy time, even if emergency services continue to remove bodies from the rubble and rescue citizens trapped in rising waters. With the fourth fate of monsoon preparing to strike with full force, the authorities rush to keep one step ahead of the flood.
The renewed warning occurs while the rescue authorities have confirmed at least seven more dead while more than 180 people were saved from vulnerable and flooded areas of Punjab.
Deaths were mainly caused by the collapses of the roof, landslides and other emergencies related to rain.
Meanwhile, flooding alerts have been issued for the main rivers and urban floods are planned in several cities.
According to the provincial Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), districts such as Rawalpindi, Murrier, Galyat, Attock, Chakwal, Mandi Bahauddin, Hafizabad, Gujrat, Jhelum and Gujranwala are likely to undergo heavy rains with violent winds.
The rain is also expected in Lahore, Faisalabad, Sialkot, Narowal, Toba Tek Singh, Jhang, Sargodha and Mianwali. For southern Punjab, forecasts predict the rain in Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan, Bahawalpur and Bahawalnagar from July 18 to 23.
Alert
In a separate development, the PDMA Punjab has issued an flood alert for the Indus River in Kalabagh and Chashma, where high flood levels are expected in the next 24 hours.
The commissioners of the Sargodha and Dera Ghazi Khan divisions, as well as the assistant commissioners of Mianwali, Bhakkar, Layyah, Kot Addu, Dera Ghazi Khan, Muzaffargarh and Rajanpur, were responsible for remaining alert for possible flood scenarios.
Rescue 1122 and relevant departments, including local government, agriculture, irrigation, health, forests, livestock and transport, were responsible for finishing all preparations in advance. Emergency control rooms must remain entirely equipped with personnel, while the response to disasters and fuel supplies must be practiced.
The authorities have been responsible for ensuring the evacuation of people and livestock from river beds and to store emergency camps with food, drinking water and essential supplies.
Senate
Friday, the senator of PTI Ali Zafar fell hard in the Senate on federal governments and the Punjab for “serious negligence” in the face of devastating rains of monsoon, claiming that the authorities were held as silent spectators that the citizens had remained helpless.
Speaking in the House on a point of public importance, Senator Zafar deplored the loss of innocent and precious lives because of the floods and the urban flood, saying that people were left helpless and blocked.
He called for the immediate training of a parliamentary committee to investigate administrative failures and responses in the event of a disaster.
“The state machinery remained a silent spectator while the roads have turned into rivers, houses and entire neighborhoods were overwhelmed and the citizens were forced to climb the roofs to save their lives,” he said.
“This is not the first time. Mousson rains were planned well in advance, but the federal and provincial departments have remained unprepared.”
He also castigated the performance of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and provincial emergency intervention institutions.
“Where was the NDMA? Where were the Punjab disaster agencies? What emergency plans had the government designed? And why were immediate help provided to the victims?”
He said people had the right to wonder if the government had a system in place to deal with such natural disasters.
“It is the duty of the State to protect the life, property and dignity of its citizens. If we fail today, mothers tomorrow will be seen in search of their children in flood waters,” he warned.
He urged the Senate to demand a complete government report on damage and administrative response to the monsoon crisis and to build a parliamentary committee to ensure responsibility and preparation for future calamities.
High alert
The Punjab government has placed all district administrations on high alert.
The director general of the PDMA, Irfan Ali Kathia, said that alerts have been sent to the departments of health, irrigation, communication and works, local government and livestock.
Count bodies
The current monsoon fate has already caused losses of lives and massive damage.
Rescue officials reported that three people died and one was injured in Chiniot. Among the victims, there were Bano, 45, wife of Riaz and Shamim, 27, wife of Nawaz, who was killed when the roof of a house collapsed in Chak No 140.
In another incident at Kot Bhawana, Zafar Abbas, 45, son of Rehmat Ali, lost his life.
In Lahore, Naheed, 35, wife of Siddiq, was killed and four others were injured after a collapsed roof in the districts of Maraka on Multan Road.
In the Okara, Chak 26-1al, Renala Khurd, Rani Bibi, 25, wife of Mazhar Iqbal, was killed and four others were injured in a similar incident.
Likewise, Sargodha reported the death of Sikandar, 40, son of Muhammad Sharif, in Chak 86 on Lahore Road.
A deadly landslide in the Arrah village in Chakwal in Basharat, Choa Saidan Shah, killed Muhammad Zubair Ahmad, 36. Meanwhile, in Jhelum, the roofs, walls and other emergencies that were injured, 172 people, the seriously injured injured rushed into neighboring hospitals.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan meteorological department has planned a heavy monsoon activity in all the provinces, including Gilgit-Baltistan and the Kashmir of Azad. In the Sindh, strong precipitation is expected from the night from July 18 to July 20 in Tharparkar, Umarkot, Mithi, Hyderabad, Badin, Thsta, Karachi, Khairpur, Jacobabad, Dadu, Kashmore, Benazirabad, Sanghar, Sukkur, Ghotki and the Avocat areas.
In Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, precipitation is predicted between July 21 and 25 at Dera Ismail Khan, Tank, Kohat, Swat, Dir, Malakand, Shangla, Battagram, Bajaur, Waziristan, Abbottabad, Manshra, Peshawar, Mardan, Charsadda and Hangu.
Punjab should also discover the rain from July 20 to 25 in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Attock, Jhelum, Gujrat, Lahore, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Narowal, Faisalabad, Chiniot, Sahiwal, Jhang, Okara, Bhakkar and Mianwali.
Balutchistan can attend the rain between July 18 and 19 and again from July 21 to 23 in Lasbela, Awaran, Khuzdar, Quetta, Zhob, Killa Saifullah, Ziarat, Qalat, Shirani, Musa Khel, Loralai and Barkhan.
The Met Office has warned of potential floods in local rivers and draws in the northeast of Punjab, KP and Kashmir, as well as the risk of urban floods in cities like Lahore, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad and Peshawar.
The authorities also reported the possibility of landslides in Murrier, Galyat, KP, Cashmire and Gilgit-Baltistan. Citizens have been invited to avoid low infrastructure, water -signed areas and locations with solar panels or high trees, as safety remains the main concern of the government.
