MULTAN: An evacuation operation was launched to relocate citizens, after an 80-foot-wide crack in the Chenab River safety dam near Shujabad.
The district administration was carrying out efforts to fill the dam breach, while the officials appealed to citizens to immediately vacate adjacent areas.
The breach will directly affect Mitho, Mahde, Dhondu, Soman, Bengala and Nai Basti.
Punjab is facing a relentless flood emergency as the Sutlej, Ravi and Chenab rivers continue to swell, inundating thousands of villages and displacing millions across the province.
The situation intensified after Indian authorities issued alerts regarding rising water levels at Ganda Singh Wala and Ferozepur two days ago, prompting renewed evacuations along the Sutlej River.
Despite some areas witnessing a slight recession in water levels, the overall flood threat remains severe, with rescue and relief operations stretched across multiple districts.
At Panjnad Headworks on the Chenab River, water discharge surged to an exceptionally high level, crossing 668,000 cusecs. Between Wednesday morning and early Thursday, the flow increased by 100,000 cusecs, triggering mass evacuations in Alipur tehsil.
Flooding has caused severe damage in seven villages of Pakpattan, forcing thousands of people to evacuate.
Rescue teams continued boat operations for a second day, moving around 3,500 people and 250 animals to safer areas. Floodwater also destroyed rice and maize crops spread across hundreds of acres.
Indus River water levels surge at Punjnad Barrage
Punjab Chief Secretary Zahid Akhtar Zaman, on the orders of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, rushed to Alipur in Muzaffargarh as water levels surged in the Indus River at Punjnad Headworks. The inflow and outflow at the barrage rose to 668,195 cusecs.
Officials said the flood stream that struck central Punjab has now moved towards south Punjab and is heading into Sindh.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) reported that the monsoon season has weakened, and no major rise in Punjab’s rivers is expected. According to the PDMA Director General, rains in the upper catchment areas have ended, and Punjab’s tenth spell of monsoon rains has concluded.
The PDMA also said that heavy rainfall is not expected in the coming week, though high to very high flood levels remain in several rivers.
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