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LAHORE, Jan 14: Closure of all important roads and connecting passages and disappearance of public transport on the eve of the third Lahore Marathon created acute traffic problems and left many people stranded at bus and wagon stops here on Sunday.
The blockage of main roads and mismanagement on the part of the traffic controllers irked also those people who had to reach the Punjab Stadium. Ferozepur Road, Canal Road, Mall Road, Secretariat Road and Minar-i-Pakistan thoroughfare were blocked ahead of the scheduled time of 9am and the commuters and pedestrians could not reach their destinations in time.
Many people had to walk up to several kilometers to catch rickshaws and public transport that was available. It was an equally tough day for motorists who had to brave traffic snarl-ups and they had only the provincial government and the traffic policemen to blame for the inconvenience.
The people who turned up at the Punjab Stadium to witness the marathon also faced a great deal of inconvenience while parking their vehicles despite the fact that they were issued parking stickers. The parking lot was anything but organised.
“Not a single traffic police official was present to guide the visitors on how and where to park the vehicles. A majority of the people parked their vehicles wherever they liked; they did not bother to look at the number they were allotted to park the vehicle,” an eyewitness told this reporter.
Reports of the police making two Edhi ambulances halt on Jail Road and Gulberg’s Main Boulevard also poured in. However, no Rescue 1122 vehicle was stopped.
The traffic police, on the other hand, claimed that no traffic jam occurred in the city and at least nine ambulances were allowed to use the otherwise blocked roads and reach Mayo and Services hospitals. They said the traffic police squads were present at each diversion to facilitate the commuters and the ambulances.
Meanwhile, high security measures were taken to make the marathon a success. Operations police chief Aamir Zulfikar inspected the routes and deployed officials before the marathon.
RESCUE 1122: The Punjab Emergency Service (Rescue 1122) provided first aid to 311 runners and shifted 15 to hospitals while providing rescue and emergency cover to the Lahore Marathon on Sunday.
According to a press release issued here, the service established 31 rescue posts and deputed 14 emergency ambulances for rescue cover of the event.
As many as 326 rescue operations were conducted by rescuers to provide medical care to the injured and exhausted participants in different races.
Four athletes (two of them participating in three-kilometre race for the blind) were shifted to the Services Hospital, nine were transported to Mayo hospital and one each to Sir Ganga Ram and Lahore General hospitals with breathing problems and muscular cramps.
Another 37 emergency incidents took place in the city during the event and were successfully managed by the service, the press release added.
