The Punjab Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has warned that there is a risk that the Qadirabad headworks on the Chenab River could collapse, which could severely affect the areas of Hafizabad and Chiniot.

“Instructions have been issued to deputy commissioners for the immediate evacuation of citizens,” a PDMA statement read, quoting the authority’s director general Irfan Ali Kathia.

“Teams from the district administration and irrigation department are present at the scene,” the statement added. “There is continuous water pressure on the headworks.”