LAHORE: A relentless downpour began at 5am on Thursday, bringing Lahore to a standstill for over six hours. It submerged low-lying areas, paralysed traffic, and left a trail of destruction across several districts in Punjab.
Drainage efforts by the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) teams are still underway to clear the widespread flooding, although the rain had stopped around 11:30am.
While Nishtar Town bore the brunt of the deluge, recording 182mm of rainfall, the intensity of the downpour was such that rainwater inundated homes in Dharampura, Shah Jamal, Choburji, and surrounding localities.
Vehicles and motorcycles were stranded in deep water, particularly in underpasses and along major roads.
A house and mosque in Shah Jamal were also flooded. Wall and roof collapse incidents were reported in Lahore, Okara, Sheikhupura, and Pattoki, leaving five people dead, including a woman and two children, and injuring several others.
In Sheikhupura, two children — 5-year-old Fatima and 2-year-old Arham — were killed when their home’s roof collapsed. In Pattoki, a 55-year-old woman named Salma Bibi and a 12-year-old boy named Sujawal lost their lives in separate incidents.
In Lahore, a boy was electrocuted while bathing in rainwater collected in a vacant plot near Lari Adda.
Lahore’s Katchi Abadis and underpasses were heavily affected, including areas around Kalma Chowk, Ferozepur Road, Haji Camp, Canal Road, and Harbanspura. Despite ongoing drainage efforts, many neighbourhoods remained waterlogged.
The Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) reported outages on 142 feeders, disrupting power supply in many areas. CEO LESCO urged citizens to avoid power poles and infrastructure during wet conditions and said restoration work would begin once rain stopped.
WASA Managing Director Ghaffar Ahmed visited affected areas and directed staff to quickly clear major roads. Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz appreciated WASA staff working through the storm and ordered uninterrupted operations until all roads were cleared.
The Meteorological Department has predicted that monsoon rains will continue intermittently until July 13, with more downpours expected in Lahore, Jhelum, Sialkot, Narowal, and Hafizabad in the next 24 hours.
