LAHORE, Feb 22: Lahore and several other cities in the Punjab, the NWFP and the Northern Areas received rain on Friday.

The Met Office predicted more rain and snow over the hills during the next 24 hours.

The early morning rain and the strong wind that continued throughout the day resulted in vastly improved weather in Lahore.

The day’s maximum temperature was 25 degrees C compared with 26.1 degrees of Thursday. The wind velocity at 10.30am was 45.1 kilometres per hour.

By 2pm, the Met Office had recorded 2.3mm rain at Lahore airport and 2.2mm at its Jail Road observatory. Sargodha had received 3.5mm, Saidu Sharif 13.3, Dir 30, Jhelum 2.8, Kakul 8.4, Darosh 6.2, Murree 11, Rawalpindi 9, Peshawar 17.5 and Kotli 2mm. Multan and Faisal-abad received just traces of rain.

The Met Office predicted widespread thunderstorm and rain besides snow over the hills in Kashmir. It also forecast rain in many cities in the Punjab, the NWFP and Northern Areas. In Lahore, it said, it will remain cloudy with chances of light rain.