Web desk: Authorities across Pakistan have been told to stay on high alert as a fresh spell of monsoon rains is forecast to bring torrential downpours, windstorms and thunderstorms from today until August 21.
The warning comes as fears grow of flooding in Punjab’s rivers, fuelled both by heavy rains and glacial melt in the north.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said rain and thunderstorms, with scattered heavy to very heavy falls, are expected in many regions over the next few days.
Kashmir (Neelum Valley, Muzaffarabad, Rawalakot, Poonch, Hattian, Bagh, Haveli, Sudhanoti, Kotli, Bhimber and Mirpur) and Gilgit-Baltistan (Diamer, Astore, Ghizer, Skardu, Hunza, Gilgit, Ghanche and Shigar) are forecast to experience widespread downpours from August 17 to 19.
In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, areas including Chitral, Swat, Kohistan, Shangla, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Peshawar, Kohat, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Waziristan, Dera Ismail Khan and others are likely to face persistent rain and thunderstorms during the same period.
Similar conditions are predicted in Punjab, covering Rawalpindi, Murree, Lahore, Sargodha, Faisalabad and Sahiwal from August 17 to 19, while Dera Ghazi Khan, Multan, Bahawalpur, Rajanpur and Rahimyar Khan could see scattered rainfall between August 18 and 20.
Sindh is expected to receive rain and thunderstorms from August 17 to 22, affecting Karachi, Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas, Sukkur, Larkana, Khairpur, and Tharparkar, among other districts.
In Balochistan, Barkhan, Musakhel, Zhob, Khuzdar, Gwadar and Panjgur are among the areas likely to be hit by downpours from August 17 to 21.
The PMD has cautioned that flash floods may hit local streams and nullahs in KP, Punjab and Kashmir from August 17 to 19, while hill torrents in Dera Ghazi Khan and parts of eastern Balochistan could flood between August 18 and 21.
Major cities, including Islamabad, Lahore, Peshawar, Gujranwala, Karachi and Hyderabad, may face urban flooding during this spell. Landslides and mudslides could also block roads in hilly regions of KP, Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir and Galiyat.
At least 321 people have lost their lives as torrential monsoon rains continue to batter northern Pakistan, triggering flash floods and landslides across several provinces, officials said.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s early warning system failed to activate during the recent torrential rains that left many dead in northern Pakistan.
The failure has sparked strong calls for accountability and demands for urgent steps to ensure the system is fully functional before the next spell of heavy rain.
Read more: PMD warns of more flash floods, heavy rains across Pakistan, regional weather forecast inside
