ISLAMABAD: Warning against possible heavy rain in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Balochistan and the hills of northern Punjab the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has issued an advisory regarding the weather system coming into the country from the northwest.
Thick clouds have formed over most of Afghanistan and are travelling towards Pakistan, as can be seen in the satellite imagery on PMD’s website.
Weather conditions towards the north of the country are expected to be more serious and PMD has said that an active weather system was causing rains over Balochistan and was headed towards KP where it will likely bring intense rains Friday evening.
The Met Office has warned that there is a risk of flash floods and landslides in some parts of KP, where heavy rain and thunderstorms are expected for Friday and Saturday.
The upper parts of KP, including Malakand, Hazara, Peshawar, Mardan and Kohat will receive scattered rains in between heavy showers from Friday to Saturday, PMD has said.
As the weather system continues to move towards the east, Saturday will bring widespread rain and thunder over Balochistan, KP Fata and upper Punjab including Rawalpindi, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Lahore, Sahiwal, Guranwala, Islamabad and Kashmir.
“There are chances of landslide in Murree and Hazara on Saturday and Sunday,” an official at the Met office said.
Scattered rains and thunderstorms are expected in Sindh, south Punjab including Bahawalpur, Multan and DG Khan and also in Gilgit Baltistan.
Rains will reduce temperatures in Punjab and KP as slow moving and the cold winds from the Himalayas will reduce temperatures by two degrees.
As this weather system is at 3,000 feet above sea level, it is likely to have a more limited impact in Karachi and other coastal areas in Sindh.
Only light rains are expected in Karachi, because the cold air from the West will be met with warm, moist air over the Arabian Sea.
The lowest temperature in Islamabad and Lahore was recorded at 12 and 16 degrees respectively while the highest amount of rainfall in Quetta was 26 ml, while in Sibbi, 19 mm of rain was received, 18 mm in Dalbandi, 15 in Jaccobabad and 10 mm in Barkhan
Published in Dawn, March 11th, 2016
