LAHORE: The city received 238 millimetres rain on Thursday, followed by impressive spells in other parts of the city as well, including 197mm rain near the airport and 63mm in the area of Jail Road.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said this is purely monsoon spell and there was no contribution of westerly waves in the heavy downpour. However, PMD sources have predicted less rains from Friday onwards, followed by rise in temperature and eventually intensified humid weather in the city.

The sources said the monsoon spells proceeded to the other parts of the central Punjab, bringing heavy rain in districts Okara and Jhang after causing heavy rains in district Lahore and adjacent areas. However, there were no reports of rain in the catchment areas as it was predicted earlier. They said the present spell is unlikely to bring rain to the catchment areas of rivers but the upcoming spell of July 28 is likely to shower rain in and around the rivers.

PMD Director Shahid Abbas said there was no widespread rain out of the prevailing monsoon spell, as there were gaps in many parts of the province due to the absence of westerly waves. Under the westerly waves, he said, a sheet of clouds cover larger areas and bring in heavy downpour, a phenomenon that was rare during the Thursday’s rain.

Meanwhile, an impressive spell of rain in the city led to inundating the low-lying areas throughout the city, causing traffic jams, especially in the early part of the day when majority of the public was out of their homes to reach workplaces. Long queues of vehicles could be witnessed on major arteries of the city. Meanwhile, the adjacent areas were full of urban flooding due to chocking down of drainage system in many areas, including the posh ones.

The record-breaking heavy rains on Thursday inundated many parts of the provincial capital, especially the low-lying areas, while streets turned into rivulets disrupting the everyday life in the city. The WASA staff actively pursued the situation and pumped out the water.

The rains that began early in the morning affected Mall Road, Shimla Pahari, Garhi Shahu, Ferozepur Road, Green Town, Township Multan Road, Mughalpura, Harbanspura, Canal Road, Wahadat Road, Ferozepur Road, Johar Town, Gaddafi Studium and its surrounding areas, Pani Wala Talab, Laxami Chowk, McLeod Road, Chaurburji, Islampura, Sandha, Krishannagar Bazar, Icchara, Monzang, Badami Bagh, Abid Market, Nisbat Road, Railway Station, Missri Shah, Waseempura, Mughalpura and Do Muriah Pul. However, much of the rainwater receded in the afternoon.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022