ISLAMABAD: The urban flooding caused by cloudburst in the capital city, on Wednesday, left two people dead, paralysed civic life, and inundated roads and streets, and created serious problems for motorists and pedestrians.
Two people including a mother and a minor were killed when overnight heavy rain water entered homes at around 6am in sector E-11 of the capital city.
According to the family, four children and their mother drowned, when a nearby drain overflowed and water entered their house and accumulated in the basement.
Pak Army called in as urban flooding hits parts of Islamabad following cloudburst
The rescue team rescued three children, while one child and the mother died.
The flood caused by heavy rains also caused damage to roads and also took away cars in Sector E-11.
Deputy Commissioner (DC) Muhammed Hamza Shafqaat through a tweet attributed the flash flood with a cloudburst and urged the public to "cooperate and restrict unnecessary movements".
The deputy commissioner further said the spillways of Rawal Dam were being opened as he appealed to the public to stay away from the riverbanks of Korang and Soan rivers.
Additionally, Section 144 (power to issue order absolute at once in urgent cases of nuisance or apprehended danger) was imposed on bathing in rivers, the DC said, adding that rescue and management teams were present to handle the situation.
Police said that a women and a minor lost their lives in a house in Sector E11/2, as flood water entered the house's basement at night which caused the death of the child, while the mother passed away later.
According to the Capital Development Authority (CDA), all teams are in the field who cleared water from roads.
‘Very heavy’ or ‘torrential’ rains expected
The officials said flooding in Sector E-11 was due to "poor management" of private housing schemes, adding that there was no equipment available to deal with the situation.
Officials also said that the flood situation in Sector E-11 was created due to the poor performance of the management of a housing society.
Meanwhile, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid said that the army and local administration are on high alert in the federal capital to deal with the situation.
"The army is alert, Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) is on alert as well as the district administration," he said, while talking to media during his visit to Nullah Leh.
Meanwhile, following the flooding in the federal capital, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar issued an alert due to the threat of flooding in adjoining city Rawalpindi's Leh Nullah, and asked Rescue 1122 to put in place all the arrangements to deal with any emergency-like situation.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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