ISLAMABAD: Heavy rains in Murree led to the water level in Rawal Lake rising by a foot and close to its maximum capacity but the authorities are hesitant to open the spillways yet.

The 20 mm of rain in Murree on the night between Monday and Tuesday increased the water level in the lake from 1,743.50 feet to 1,744.60 feet.

“The spillways are usually opened at 1,742 feet but this year, it has been decided to open them when the water rises to 1,748 feet,” said an official of the Punjab Irrigation Department, which manages Rawal Lake.

“This is because the monsoon rains have been erratic this year and there have been less rains in the catchment areas,” he explained.

The met office has said that three or four rain spells are expected in upper Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan due to which the lake may fill to its upper limit by the end of the week, officials of the Punjab Irrigation Department say.

The met office has also said that monsoon rains in South Asia, including Pakistan, are going to be weaker after mid-August.

Two spells of light to moderate rains are expected in Sindh and Balochistan.

The met office has said almost normal rainfall is expected in the north of the country and below normal rains are expected in the southern half this month.

Rains, thunderstorms and isolated heavy rains are expected at scattered places in Kashmir and upper Punjab including Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

Heavy rains are also expected in central Punjab including Gujranwala, Lahore, Sargodha, Faisalabad and parts of KP including Malakand, Hazara, Peshawar, Mardan, Kohat, Bannu and D.I Khan as well as the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.

Data released by the Federal Flood Commission says the River Jhelum is at medium flood in Mangla.

The Indus River at Kalabagh and Chashma and the River Chenab at Marala, Khanki and Qadirabad are at low to medium levels and the Indus is at low level at Tarbela, Taunsa, Guddu and Sukkur as is the River Kabul at Nowshera.

The National Disaster Management Authority has said low to medium level floods are expected in the nullahs of rivers Ravi and Chenab and has cautioned the local authorities to keep vigil and restrict the unnecessary movement of the public close to water bodies.

Published in Dawn, August 2nd, 2017