The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Sunday warned of an expected significant rise in water levels of Pakistan’s major rivers between Aug. 2-4, issuing flood alerts for several regions.
In its advisory, the NDMA has urged the public to avoid unnecessary travel to flood-prone areas amidst intensifying monsoon rains. It also urged the public to stay updated through the official Pak NDMA Disaster Alert mobile application for timely weather warnings and emergency information.
The National Emergencies Operation Center (NEOC) has said high-level flooding was recorded in the Lehri River at Head Gogi, while medium-level flooding is underway in Nullah Palkhu at Wazirabad.
It said low-level flooding also continues at Kalabagh, Chashma, Guddu and Sukkur along the Indus River, as well as at Head Nari on the Nari River. On the Chenab River, high-level flows are expected at Marala, while low- to medium-level flows are forecast at Khanki and Qadirabad. Water levels are also expected to rise in the Jhelum, Ravi and Kabul rivers, along with their tributaries.
According to the NDMA, streams linked to the Jhelum, Chenab and Ravi rivers could experience medium to high flows, while water levels in the Ravi and Sutlej rivers would depend on releases from Indian reservoirs. It also cautioned about the risk of flash floods in the hill torrents of Dera Ghazi Khan and Rajanpur, as well as seasonal streams in central and southern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and northern Balochistan.
The disaster management body further warned of urban flooding and rainwater accumulation in low-lying areas of Rawalpindi, Jhelum, Gujranwala, Lahore, Faisalabad, Peshawar, Mardan, Nowshera, Hyderabad, Badin, Thatta and other parts of Sindh.