Monsoon Spell : Floods Bring Evacuations in Pakistan
At least 40 villages in Punjab province affected by raging floodwaters: officials
KARACHI, Pakistan: Floodwaters submerged swaths in Pakistan’s Punjab province, prompting authorities to intensify evacuations, officials and news media stated on Thursday.
“At least 40 villages of Jhang district have been affected by the raging floodwaters due to the inflow of river Chenab, acting Chief Minister Punjab Mohsin Naqvi said in a tweet.
Authorities in Punjab’s Okara, Pakpattan, Bahawalnagar, and Wazirabad districts have been put on “high alert” due to floods threat, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said in a statement.
Over 80 “shelter and relief” camps have been established by the government in the said districts to accommodate the evacuated residents, it added.
Also, Pakistan Met Office has forecast a fresh spell of monsoon rains from July 13 to 17 in the upper and central parts of the country, posing flooding threats to several districts.
Apart from Chenab, the Sutlej and Ravi rivers are also flowing in moderate to high floods due to massive rains in the northern states of India, where the catchment areas of the two water bodies are located.
Following the massive rains, India is releasing more water towards the downstream areas in Pakistan.
Meanwhile, Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman, in a tweet, warned of urban flooding, thunderstorms, and landslides during the fresh monsoon spell, urging the tourists going to those regions “to exercise caution to avoid misadventures.”
Overall, 76 people have been killed and over 150 injured by massive rains and floods since June, according to the official statistics.
