RAWALPINDI: Heavy rain threw normal life in the twin cities out of gear on Monday afternoon, raising the water level in Leh Nullah to 10 feet and flooding low-lying areas.

The rain started after Zuhr prayer in the afternoon and continued till 5pm, providing relief to the people who were suffering from hot and humid weather for the last three days.

The district administration, Civil Defence Department and Rescue 1122 remained on high alert to deal with any emergency.

The Meteorological Department recorded 37mm rain in Golra, 8mm at Saidpur, 47mm at Airport, 46mm each at Zero Point and Bokra in Islamabad and 63mm at Shamsabad, 68mm at Kutchery and 67mm at Chaklala in Rawalpindi.

The Met Office has forecast more rain in Rawalpindi and Islamabad during the next 24 hours.

“Moist currents from Arabian sea are penetrating the upper parts of the country while a westerly wave is also present in the upper parts of the country,” said an official of the Meteorological Department.

He said hot and humid weather was expected in the plain areas of the country. However, he said rain-wind/thundershower is expected at isolated places in upper and central Punjab, Potohar region, Islamabad, upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir.

He said heavy rain may also occur in isolated places in upper Punjab, Potohar, upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Kashmir. He said the current weather would continue till August 16.

The Met Office has warned that moderate to heavy rainfall might increase the water flows in local nullahs, streams of Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, Chitral, Dir, Swat, Kohistan, Shangla, Buner, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Rawalpindi and Islamabad on Aug 16.

It stated that moderate to heavy rains may cause urban flooding in low lying areas of Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Gujranwala, Sialkot and surroundings on Aug 15 and may trigger landslides in the vulnerable areas of Murree, Galliyat, Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan and hilly areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the wet spell.

Residents in the low lying areas remained busy in the afternoon to drain out rainwater entered in their houses.

Mohammad Akram, a resident of Javed Colony, said that many areas along big drains were inundated with the water after the heavy rain.

He said that as a precautionary measure, they shifted their household item in the upper floor of their house.

Nisar Ali, a resident of Gawalmandi, said that the Rawalpindi Cantonment Board had done nothing to dredge nullahs and drains.

He said that the sanitation situation went from bad to worse in the cantonment.

“The Leh Nullah rose to 10 feet but the situation remained under control due to dredging of the nullah before the monsoon,” said Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) Managing Director Mohammad Tanveer while talking to Dawn.

“The Wasa officials remained on alert to deal with any emergency,” he said adding the water level in Leh Nullah, however, receded soon after the rain stopped and by night the water level recorded at five feet,” he added.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2023