OKARA: Six more deaths were reported from different parts of the districts, besides injuries to 24 people, in the incidents related to the heavy thunderstorm and rain that lashed the area on Monday night, taking the total death toll to 14.

Earlier, eight members of a family had died when the roof of their house collapsed during the heavy rain at Basti Tariqabad-Bangla Gogera.

According to local head of Rescue 1122 emergency service Zafar Iqbal, most of the casualties were reported in rural parts of the district, including areas of Dipalpur, Haveli Lakkha, Renala Khurd, Mustafabad and Saddar Gogera in incidents of roof /wall collapse, uprooting of trees and poles etc.

The windstorm that preceded heavy rain uprooted hundreds of trees, signboards, flexes and electricity poles, besides damaging the maize crop over a large area that was being harvested.

As per the Met office, the district was lashed by winds having a velocity of 75km per hour, while it received 18.4mm of rain.

Man, son electrocuted in Bahawalnagar

Meanwhile, acting Deputy Commissioner Saba Asghar Ali visited the roof collapse site at Bangla Gogera, where eight members of a labourers family had died and offered condolence to elderly surviving head, Waryam.

Markets in Bangla Gogera and other rural areas remained closed to mourn the loss of lives.

Till the filing of the story, Lahore Electric Supply Company’s field teams were busy restoring power supply to many rural areas.

Many urban areas under different municipalities also witnessed accumulation of rainwater and choked sewer lines.

BAHAWALNAGAR: A man and his son were electrocuted, while 12 others were injured and dozens of animals burnt alive in different incidents of fire, roof collapse and short circuit during the heavy rain, dust/thunderstorm that lashed the area on Monday night.

According to Rescue spokesperson, in Minchinabad a youth, Munawar, was electrocuted when he touched the iron gate of his house during the rain that was electrified because of a short circuit while his father also suffered massive electric shock while trying to rescue him and later he too died at hospital.

He said two men – Ateeq and Rizwan and a woman, Shehzadi Noor, residents of Minchinabad, Khalil of Bahawalnagar city and Abdul Wahab of Chak Laleka, injured in roof collapse incidents and were rushed to hospitals.

According to the spokesperson, a fire broke out during the thunderstorm in Multani Colony and because of strong winds engulfed five houses, causing a huge financial loss to the residents. He said Rescue teams, on receiving information, reached there and extinguished the blaze.

He said the Rescue teams could not attend to some fire incidents reported in the district because of shortage of fire engines.

In one such incident occurring at Mauza Mirzeka, Minchinabad, eight people suffered burns, while 18 sheep and eight buffalos burnt alive when a fire broke out during the dust storm and engulfed some outhouses.

Meanwhile, the strong winds uprooted a large number of trees, electricity poles and signboards.

The rain and windstorm also deprived many urban and rural areas of electricity supply that remained suspended for several hours, while the rainwater accumulated in different city areas.

SAHIWAL: Six persons, including a minor girl, died and 52 others were injured in different incidents occurring during the windstorm.

The winds having a velocity of 100km per hour lashed the district for around 45 minutes, causing deaths in different incidents of wall, roof collapse, uprooting of trees, signboards and poles.

Abbas and his two-year old daughter Madiha died when the roof of their house collapsed in Mohalla Pir Bokhari, while his four children and wife got critically injured.

In the Jahaz Ground area, the roof of an under-construction building collapsed onto an adjacent house, killing Surriyya Bibi and injuring seven others.

Similarly, Amir Khan was killed when a wall collapsed on him at 48/GD village.

A rickshaw driver, Amin, died in Yousafwala when strong winds blew away his three-wheeler into a drain, while a woman, Shazia Bibi died when a tree fell on her at 87/9-L village.

As per Rescue 1122 officials, they shifted 33 injured persons, including 10 children, to the DHQ Hospital for treatment.

Published in Dawn, June 2nd, 2021