2014-09-07

Our correspondents

LAHORE/SIALKOT/GUJRANWALA: Heavy rains and water released by dams in the Chenab river in India have flooded vast areas and caused widespread destruction in Sialkot, Gujrat, Gujranwala, Hafizabad, Azad Kashmir and other areas. The death toll in rain- and flood-related incidents has crossed 200 as 33 more were killed on Sunday while some protective embankments also had to be broken to protect major cities.

The Punjab government has declared a flood emergency in the province. Over 700 villages have been inundated across Punjab, and standing crops on thousands of acres of land have been completely destroyed. Floods wreaked devastation in Hafizabad, Sialkot and Gujranwala districts of Punjab, leaving several areas cut off from the rest of the country.

Nearly 200 villages in Hafizabad and over 80 villages in Chiniot have been inundated as floodwaters entered Jhang city. While water started receding in many parts of Lahore and other districts, a red alert has been issued in Punjab's four districts - Jhelum, Sialkot, Nankana Sahib and Narowal - where the situation was still precarious. In Jhelum, Shanti Nagari locality has been completely devastated by the rain and victims are staying out in the open.

Heavy rains and water released by India in Chenab river have flooded vast areas in Sialkot, Gujrat, Gujranwala, Hafizabad and other areas. The Punjab government has declared a flood emergency in the province. According to a handout issued in Lahore, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif directed the authorities and departments to speed up the relief and assistance activities for the flood and rain-hit people. He also directed provincial ministers, commissioners and DCOs to remain in the field to facilitate the flood victims.

Flood in the river Chenab caused massive destruction and according to reports 36 villages in Gujrat have come under water. Water entered in 200 villages of Hafizabad and Mandi Bahauddin and four were washed away by the gushing water. District officials said more than 200,000 people have been affected by the floods and 3,000 have been shifted to safer places.

GUJRANWALA: Twenty villages were inundated after the Irrigation Department officials broke protection culverts on Chenab river along Kot Nath to lessen the burden on Khanki Headworks due to the high flood on Sunday.

After the passing of high flood through the headwork, rescue teams, including the army, started shifting the people to safer places. Army teams had so far rescued over 1,000 people stranded in the floodwaters. Water level had started receding in the river. Gujranwala Corps Commander Lt-General Salim Nawaz took an aerial view of the flood-hit areas. Meanwhile, Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan also visited the areas hit by floods and ordered to expedite rescue operations. Talking to newsmen, the minister appealed to the protesters belonging to the PTI and the PAT to work for the flood affectees. He said the government would not rest till the rehabilitation of all flood affectees.

MANDI BAHAUDDIN: Flood in the Chenab and Jhelum rivers played havoc with the district on Sunday.

About 500,000 cusecs water passed through the Rasool Barrage in Jhelum River while over 900,000 cusecs was passing through Qadirabad Barrage in the Chenab River till the filing of the report. Flood in the Chenab river played havoc with Phalia tehsil where almost 100 villages, including Bahri, Saida, Farrukhpur, Jago, Bhoa Hassan, Tariqabad, Makhdoompur, Thatta, Bahoo Manga and Chakari, were under four to five feet water. People had taken refuge on the roofs of their houses and trees and were waiting for rescue operation. Sial interchange road was also inundated by the floodwater.

Meanwhile, flood in the Jhelum River inundated more than 12 villages of Mandi Bahauddin and Malakwal tehsils. The affected villages included Mong, Kotli and Khewa. Two brothers - Rehmat Ali and Mehmood Ali - who drowned in Jhelum River on Saturday night, were buried in a graveyard at Mong. The district administration had started rescue operation and rescued more than 1,000 people.

NANKANA SAHIB: Two villages were inundated as the Ravi river swelled near Mandi Faizabad.

The affected villages were Hiray and Jattan Dawera. There was medium flood in Ravi river at Balloki Headworks. Meanwhile, Nullah Dek overflowed, inundating several villages, including Khiaray Kalan, Kanwanwali, Kot Dewan, Kot Mintan, Thattha Amir, Khairpur Khuni and Chak Chur Shah. The floodwater had also entered the Government High School at Khiaray Kalan. Walls of several houses also collapsed in the village.

JHANG: The district administration has decided to breach Athara Hazari protective embankment to save Jhang and the Trimmu headworks from floods. High flood is reported at Trimmu Headworks and at Rivaz Bridge near village Chund on the Jhang-Sargodha road. The Jhelum and Chenab are both in high flood and they join at Trimu Headworks to move into district Multan. Light traffic has been banned on the Jhang Sargodha road and at least 70 villages of Jhang and Athara Hazari tehsils have been inundated by floodwater. Athara Hazari town has been vacated and flood alert has been issued.

The protective embankment would be blasted in any kind of emergency. The army is also busy in the rescue operation. Punjab Minister for Human Rights and Minority Affairs Tahir Khalil said the district government had completed arrangements at the flood relief camps and started rescue operations in the flood-hit areas around Chenab and Jhelum rivers.

HAFIZABAD: The situation at Qadirabad Headworks became alarming when 909,000 cusecs flash floodwater passed through it at noon Sunday. The headworks has designed capacity of 900,000 cusecs. However, there was no imminent danger to the headworks and Hafizabad city.

However, a flash flood has inundated all the villages located on the left bank of river Chenab or inside the protective embankment. There are 334 villages in the district of which 166 are situated on the left bank inside the protective embankment. The high flood roared down in the Model village Vanike Tarar where three to five feet water is still standing. The water also gushed into the Relief Centre Vanike Tarar.

The army has been called in to assist the civil administration and army Jawans led by Brig. Kamran and Col. Shahid have been vigorously evacuating marooned villagers by helicopters and boats and shifting them to the relief centres and other safer places. The Rescue-1122 squads and police were also evacuating the flood stricken people and shifted them to the nearby relief centres.

As many as 3,340 marooned villagers and scores of livestock have been evacuated by the joint efforts of Pakistan Army, Rescue-1122 and the police. According to villagers, four persons have fallen prey to the flood waters while dozens of others were missing.

BAHAWALPUR: A flood warning was issued to hundreds of villages of tehsil Ahmadpur East by Bahawalpur district government on Sunday and evacuation was started from possible flood-hit areas falling in riverine belt of river Chenab. The district government set up Flood Control Room in DCO office for the rescue and relief of the flood hit areas people.

TOBA TEK SINGH: Villagers residing near river Ravi bank in Kamalia and Pirmahal tehsils were asked on Sunday to shift to safer places due to flood danger in river. An official said middle-grade flood had been reported at Head Sidhnai in Pirmahal tehsil.

The Pakistan Army continued rescue and relief activities through three hundred boats and five helicopters. The ISPR said more than 3,000 marooned people have been rescued. Five hundred people were rescued by helicopters from Bajwat and Chaprar areas on Sunday. The army also carried out rescue operations in the rain and flood affected areas of Jhelum, Sarai Alamgir, Sialkot and Qadirabad. The troops have also been put on high alert at Head Trimoon and Panjnad and alerted in Multan and Dera Ghazi Khan to meet any eventuality.

NEELUM VALLEY: Another 48 people have died in Azad Kashmir. Rescue workers struggled to reach remote mountain villages in Pakistan's scenic Neelum valley along the Line of Control but landslides hampered efforts.

Reports said the highway connecting Muzaffarabad to Srinagar has been closed due to flooding in Jhelum River, with bus service and trade links between both sides also suspended.

Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has forecast more rain in Punjab, AJK and parts of KP during the next 24 hours. It said rain/thundershowers are expected in Gujranwala, Lahore, Rawalpindi and Islamabad divisions of Punjab, Malakand division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

Also, 174 people went missing in heavy snowfall and storm in the Deosai plain and Kala Pani areas of the Gilgit-Baltistan. 452 people got struck in the snowstorm along with their livestock. Local authorities on information by their relatives managed to reach 280 people and shifted them to safer places. However, the administration said 174 people with their livestock were still missing.

The Sindh government has imposed a rain emergency across the province including Karachi keeping in view the lashing rains and the concomitant flash floods, especially in Punjab, the media reported on Sunday.

Flood in the river Jhelum washed away 500 meters of road between Muzaffarabad-Hattian Bala and Chinari suspending the movement of traffic for the third day running on Sunday. Four union councils have been cut off from district headquarters Hattian Bala and people are facing extreme difficulties as shortage of food and other commodities is expected if traffic is not restored.

AJK Prime Minister Chaudhry Abdul Majeed has declared district Haveli as calamity-hit area. He told the media 22 people were killed due to destructive rains in the district. He announced Rs5 lakh compensation for each family who lost any member during rains and floods.

Spokesperson National Disaster Mangement Authority Ahmad Kamal said the flood situation was being monitored round the clock and District Administration and other concerned departments were ready to meet any emergency.

Talking to Radio Pakistan's Nuqta e Nazar programme spokesperson NDMA said that River Chenab is overflowing at Head Marala at the moment with about 793000 cusecs of water. To a question he said that 184 people have been rescued with the help of armed forces in Gujranwala, Wazirabad and Hafizabad districts. Moreover about 350 people have been rescued through 13 helicopters in other different areas.

Responding to a question he said at the moment Sialkot, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Wazirabad, Hafizabad and Jhang districts are the most affected areas while in the coming days Sargodha, Mandi Bahauddin and Khushab would be affected.

Pakistan Army relief work has also continued in flood and rains affected areas throughout Punjab.According to the Inter Service Public Relations (ISPR), Pakistan army has rescued 970 people in its flood rescue operation so far.

The operation was made in the rain and flood affected areas of Jhelum, Sarai Alamghir, Sialkot and Qadirabad.

Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Sunday directed the administration to expedite the relief activities in all flood-hit areas of Punjab. The CM also directed to send mobile filtration plants to the flood-affected areas.

Punjab Chief Relief Commissioner Nadeem Ashraf said the Punjab chief minister had immediately released Rs100m for each flood-hit district administration for relief activities.

In Sindh, the flood is expected to pass Guddu Barrage and Sukkur Barrage on Indus river on Sept 15.Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah met former President Asif Ali Zardari at Bilawal House in Karachi and briefed him about looming threat of floods in the province.

Zardari made it clear to Shah that no negligence will be tolerated in this regard.He cancelled the leaves of all Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) and District Councils staff and ordered them to return to their duties.

The Co-Chairman of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) ordered all the provincial ministers to visit their respective districts and present reports in a meeting on Monday.Zardari has given the responsibility to Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani and Nisar Ahmad Khuhro for dealing with the possible flood situation in Kashmore and Larkana whereas the situation in Dadu will be looked after by Murad Ali Shah.

Makhdoom Jameel-uz-Zaman will supervise the flood situation in Matiari, similarly Jam Khan Shoro and Nasir Shah are assigned to oversee the conditions in Hyderabad and Sukkur, respectively.

The post Floods continue to play havoc as 700 villages washed away appeared first on Geo Tv.

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