The local Met office saw no hope of any relief at least during the next 26 hours anywhere in the province.
Fog continued to blanket Lahore and most Punjab cities almost the entire Thursday night and major part of Friday, keeping the temperature low. Sunshine finally penetrated the thick layer of fog at 3pm, rising the day’s maximum temperature to only 11 degrees C.
Fog developed on Thursday night cleared in the afternoon. But it’s impact never neutralized, making people shiver throughout the day.
The minimum temperature during the night was 4.7 degrees C which was only 6.3 degrees at seven in the morning. The temperature remained 6.4 degrees C till 9am and it increased to 8.4 degrees C at noon.
Reaching work places and educational institutions in the morning was a problem especially for motorcyclists.
This scribe also saw a number of traffic policemen performing the duties in the morning and evening without wearing proper warm clothes, shivering and fighting cold while moving from one side of the road to the other. Some were seen seeking lifts from people in the evening to return to home in the absence of any transport facility for them.
Tea and heaters were in great demand at workplace and home. Streets wore a deserted look after sunset.
According to the Met office, Faisalabad, Shorkot, Mianwali, Sargodha, Multan, Sialkot, Gujranwala and Sheikhupura continued to be blanketed with thick fog.
The minimum temperature in Parachinar and Kalam was -11 degrees. It was followed by Skardu -10 degrees C, Astore -9, Gilgit -7, Dir -3, Risalpur -2 and Islamabad, Chitral and Kakul -1 degree each.
The Met office said it would remain dry, cold and foggy in the plains of the Punjab and partly cloudy in Kashmir, Gilgit and Skardu during the next 24 hours.
Meanwhile, Chief Meteorologist of the Pakistan Meteorology Department Shaukat Ali Awan said the weather conditions would improve after Jan 20. At present, he said the country was facing the peak of the winter season. Rain could only counter fog but, apparently, there was no chances of it in the near future, he said.
Doctors have advised people to take preventive measures against the cold weather as it could cause pneumonia and meningitis specially to children. They should wear proper warm clothes, they said.
Old people should also avoid exposure to the weather because this would stiffen their joints besides affecting their nervous and breathing systems, they said.