PESHAWAR The widespread monsoon rains broke the five-decade-old record in Peshawar as metrological office recorded 226 millimetres downpour on Thursday.
Mohammad Saddiq, meteorologist at the local Met office, said that the provincial metropolis received 226 millimetres of rain till 5pm on Thursday.
He forecast more rains during the next 24 hours. “The city had received 212 millimetres rains during the month of July in 1956,” he told Dawn on Thursday.
Heavy rainfall has pushed the provincial capital to complete disarray, submerging vast residential areas located along the banks of the tributaries of the River Swat.
Telecommunication and internet services remained out of order for several hours in the city. The city remained cut off from the rest of the country. Many parts of the city were without electricity.
The worst affected areas were Pajagi Road, Latifabad, Budhni, Charsadda Road, Ring Road, Dalazak Road, Pir Bala, Mathra, Lala Kallay, Wodpaga, Babo Garhi and others areas adjacent to Nowshera and Charsadda districts. The main road between Peshawar and Charsadda was closed for traffic.
The flood had submerged the same localities in August 2008, rendering more than 200,000 people homeless, while hundreds of houses were damaged. Officials said that one of the major factors of the deteriorating situation was large scale encroachments along the rivers' banks and water courses.
The Naguman and Shahalam, two major tributaries of the River Swat, and small water courses passing through residential areas of the provincial capital were overflowing which inundated hundreds of houses, roads, schools and other infrastructure. More than 300 houses were damaged in Pajagi.
Major tributaries were in extreme flood which caused large scale devastations in the area. The head of the Provincial Flood Warning Centre, Engineer Izat Khan, said that Budhni Nullah was overflowing and more than 70,000 cusec water discharge was recorded on Thursday.
He said that the River Swat was in extreme flood at Munda where 200,000 cusec outflow of water was recorded. “The water flow in the River Swat will cross 300,000 cusec figure that may cause more devastation in plain areas of Peshawar, Charsadda and Nowshera,” he said.
He said that the fresh wave of flood would hit Peshawar during the midnight. The flood warning centre has issued a second warning to the authorities concerned to evacuate the people living along the banks of the River Swat and its tributaries.
ABBOTTABAD
The flow of heavy traffic between Abbottabad and the lower areas of the country was suspended temporarily after flood damaged Ayub Bridge at Havelian.
The National Highway Authority declared the bridge dangerous for traffic when flood damaged its three pillars. According to DCO Syed Zaheerul heavy traffic was temporarily suspended and only light traffic was allowed to move on the old bridge as flow of water was high.
The Ayub Bridge is built on the main Karkoram Highway, which links the entire country to Abbottabad, Mansehra, Battagram, Muzafarabad and Gilgit-Baltistan. At least 38 roads were closed in Mansehra due to heavy rain and landslide.
BATKHELA
Several villages in Malakand protected areas were inundated due to high flood in the River Swat. About 102 people including women and children were stranded at the AT Work Colony, Jalawanan, near Aman Dara.
The stranded people are officials of irrigation department and their families. The small island-shaped colony was cut off from the rest the areas when flood water surrounded its residents at 5pm on Wednesday.
One of the officials identified as Bachazada told a local Anwarzada by phone that they were worried about their women and children. He said that they gathered in the Irrigation Rest House and were waiting for rescue teams.
Colonel Amir, operation commander in Malakand, and DCO Javed Marwat told Dawn by phone that rescue teams had reached the area. They said that bad weather and continued rains were hampering the rescue work.
The overflow in the River Swat also swept Shamozai Bridge and damaged Chakdara Bridge, which was closed for traffic.
The rainwater also inundated Lanadaki Road cutting Swat from the rest of the county. Other link bridges near Khadagzai, Badwan, and Jalawanan were also washed away.
The overflow in the Batkhela River inundated about 5,000 houses along the bank of the river. Thousands of people vacated their houses for safer places.
Locals said 10 houses were washed away in Depo village near Thana town while about 50 houses were inundated. The worst-affected areas were Jalala, Batkhela, Samanabad and Mezara, they said.
SHANGLA
About 287 houses, 46 bridges, five mosques, an eight-kilometre portion of Alpuri-Bisham Road were washed away by flood in different areas of the district.
Sixteen houses in Sardar Colony and 37 houses in Damorhai Colony were collapsed or washed away due to devastating flood and heavy downpour.
The flood also washed away two government high schools, one each for girls and boys, a basic health unit in Damorhai, a primary school for girls in Banr Khwargai and a crushing plant near Alpuri.
The main bridge on Silk Road in Bisham Bazaar was washed away, cutting Gilgit-Baltistan from the rest of the country.
The most-affected areas were Alpuri, Shumano Kas, Bailey Baba, Dheri, Karorha, Ranyal, Malakkhel and Khana.
CHARSADDA
The worst kind of flood in the rivers Swat, Jendi and Bakul inundated several villages in Charsadda.
The flood water inundated Hameed Mian Dheri, Jalo Kallay, Mirza Dher, Nemorai Baba, Dildar Ghari, Dagai Ghulam Qadir Khan, Mian Wali, Esogai, Sarasang, Mian Sahib Garhi, Namo Kallay, Tangi, Tarangzai, Thmanzai, Rajar, Mirzagan, Sher Payan, Charsadda town, Azizkhel, Bel Koroona, Bar Bela, Pandakhel, Gharibabad, Sola Kamar and Nesatha.
The residents, standing on the rooftop of their houses, were calling for help. The stranded people also protested lack of authorities' interest in rescuing them. The Qazikhel Bridge on Peshawar-Charsadda Road was also damaged due to flood.
KOHAT
Nineteen houses were washed away in by flood in Zra Mela, Arma, Hafizabad, Dal Behzadi, Siyab and Cheechanna villages of Kohat district, according to disaster management cell.
The Kohat Toi, which originates from Orakzai and Kurram agencies, played havoc in these areas after 20 years.
Local volunteers pulled out several dead bodies, who were buried alive under a bridge in Jarma on the old Indus Highway, declared dangerous by the government several years ago. The locals after hectic efforts retrieved nine bodies which were sent to KDA hospital.
MANSEHRA
The torrential rains and flood paralysed life in Mansehra, Battagram and Kohistan districts. The flood washed away the camp of hydro power project staff in Pattan and Dobeer areas of Kohistan district. Several houses were also swept away by the flood.
