Torrential monsoon rains lashing Punjab have pushed the death toll from rain-related incidents to 21. The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has confirmed that structural collapses, electrocution, and flash floods are causing widespread devastation throughout the province.
Heavy downpours paralysed Lahore on Thursday, dumping 343 millimetres of rain over 48 hours and submerging the provincial capital. Water accumulation exceeded three to four feet at more than 130 locations, severely disrupting traffic and inundating residential neighborhoods.
DHA (Defence Housing Authority) Phases 1 through 5 experienced severe flooding from Defence Mor to A Block Checkpost, while the Ghazi Underpass and Masjid Chowk Underpass closed off entirely. Commuters faced severe difficulties as vehicles became stranded in water, and deep sinkholes emerged across major arteries, including Canal Road and Johar Town Main Boulevard.
Meanwhile, river systems and major reservoirs experienced significant swelling across the country. The Federal Flood Commission (FFC) reported that national reservoirs reached 58 percent capacity, with Tarbela Dam at 69 percent and Mangla Dam at 45 percent.
The FFC informed the Senate Standing Committee on Water Resources on Thursday that Pakistan experienced several flood-related incidents between July 2 and 20, including glacial lake outbursts, flash floods, cloudbursts and riverbank erosion in parts of Gilgit-Baltistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab
Further, the Flood Forecasting Division (FFD) has predicted widespread thunderstorms, potential flash flooding in hill torrents, and urban inundation across multiple districts of the country as the active weather system continues.
