Daily Times

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Friday advised all the relevant federal and provincial authorities to ensure preventive measures in the wake of forecast for pre-monsoon wind-thundershower with heavy falls causing risk of urban flooding and landslides in the north of country.

The NDMA, in ts advisory, said the pre-monsoon rains with dust-thunderstorms were predicted from June 25-30 as an intruding weather system was bringing moist currents from the Arabian Sea which was penetrating upper and central parts of the country along with a westerly wave which was likely to enter upper parts on June 25. “Under the influence of this weather system”, it said, “the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has predicted rain and wind-thundershowers with few heavy falls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Punjab, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) and Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) from June 24 (night) to 30, and rain and wind-thundershowers with isolated heavy falls in Punjab, KP, Balochistan, and ICT from June 26 to 29. However, from June 27 to 28 rain and wind-thundershowers with isolated heavy falls are expected in Sindh.

The NDMA said in light of the above weather system forecast, “following impacts are expected in aforesaid parts of Pakistan: prevailing heatwave conditions are likely to subside, while heavy rainfall may cause urban flooding in low lying areas of Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Gujranwala and Lahore from June 26-27, and trigger landslides in the vulnerable areas of Murree, Galliyat and other hilly areas of KP, Gilgit Baltistan and AJK.” Heavy rainfall might also cause flash flooding in the hill torrents of Dera Ghazi Khan, Rajanpur and adjoining areas of north-east Balochistan on June 27, it added. Dust storms and wind-thunderstorms and heavy falls might cause damage to loose structures such as electrical poles, solar panels, hoardings, tall trees and under construction buildings, the NDMA warned.