RAWALPINDI: As rain lashed Islamabad and Rawalpindi, the water level in Leh Nullah rose to 23 feet at Kattarian Bridge and 19 feet in Gawalmandi, prompting the authorities concerned to prepare for evacuations from low-lying areas along the bank of the watercourse.

The Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa), the district administration and Rescue 1122 were on high alert as Leh Nullah swelled due to rain. According to an official, the nullah would have breached its banks had it rained for another hour. In Gawalmandi, Leh spills over at 30 feet while the danger level starts at 22 feet.

In order to evacuate people in case of any emergency, the army had also arrived with its boats along with other rescue officials who were on their toes to tackle any eventuality. Fortunately, the rain – which had started in the early morning – stopped in a few hours and the water level in Leh eventually receded. By 12pm, Leh was flowing at its normal level: five feet in Gawalmandi and 6.5 feet at Kattarian Bridge.

In other parts of the garrison city, people spent their afternoon draining accumulated rainwater from their houses, particularly in Nadeem Colony, Tench Bhatta, Misrial Road and Arya Mohallah.

Met office predicts another spell from Friday; one drowns in nullah

Wasa Managing Director Saleem Ashraf told Dawn that the water level in Leh increased to 23 feet at Kattarian Bridge and 19 feet in Gawalmandi but the desilting and cleaning of the nullahs facilitated its discharge without any hurdles within two or three hours. “The pre-alert [level] at Kattarian is at 11.4 feet and in Gawalmandi it is 8.3 feet,” he said.

The official said that water in low-lying areas was cleared in the early morning and the flood response teams cleared these areas by the morning, adding that there was no hurdle to traffic in the low-lying areas either.

The Meteorological Department recorded 92mm of rain at Zero Point, 55mm in Saidpur, 83mm in Golra and 73mm in Bokra, 3mm at the Islamabad airport, 68mm in Shamsabad, 58mm in Chaklala and 36mm at Kutchery in Rawalpindi. The met official said that monsoon currents at lower tropospheric levels from the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal were penetrating the upper parts of the country and were likely to penetrate central parts from Aug 9.

Another spell

A Met advisory said more monsoon rains from August 9 to August 12 would lash the country with occasional gaps.

Rain wind/thundershower (with scattered heavy falls) are expected in Islamabad/Rawalpindi, Murree, Galliyat, Attock, Chakwal, Talagang, Jhelum, Mandi Bahauddin, Gujrat, Gujranwala, Hafizabad, Wazirabad, Sahiwal, Jhang, Toba Tek Singh, Nankana Sahib, Chiniot, Faisalabad, Lahore, Sheikhupura, Sialkot, Narowal, Okara, Pakpattan, Kasur, Khushab and Sargodha on 9-12 August with occasional gaps.

Man killed

On Thursday, a young man was swept away in Leh Nullah after he jumped into the water for a bath. Bilal Ahmed, a resident of Dhoke Ratta, left two children behind.

His body could not traced on Thursday, with the rescue operation all set to resume today.

Body of a child, namely Ali Niaz, who drowned in Leh on Wednesday near Bostan Road was fished out by the rescue officials on Thursday whereas the search for another kid’s body – who also drowned on Wednesday –remained an exercise in futility. The rescue officials retrieved the body near Chakri. Another body was found in Korang Nullah, under the railways bridge near the Airport Housing Society on Thursday. The cause of death was not ascertained.

Published in Dawn, August 9th, 2024