Several houses and other buildings on Thursday collapsed due to heavy rain in the city. The roof of a house collapsed in Shalimar Link Road Dars Bara Main Stop where two people were trapped under debris. Rescuers shifted them to Shalimar Hospital.
In another incident, a building collapsed near Mominpura, telephone exchange. Rescue officials reached the scene, gave first aid to four victims and shifted one to Services Hospital in critical condition
Another building collapsed on Bedian Road where two people were trapped under the debris. Rescue teams reached the scene, evacuated the victims and shifted them to Lahore General Hospital.
In another report a roof collapsed in Hurbanspura where two men were trapped under the debris. Rescuers shifted the victims to a nearest hospital where one died.
Flood arrangements: Punjab Chief Secretary Javed Aslam presided over a meeting to review the flood arrangements in the province.
Senior Member Board of Revenue Nadeem Ashraf, Secretary Health Hassan Iqbal, Secretary Higher Education Farhan Aziz Khawaja, Secretary Schools Abdul Jabbar Shaheen, Secretary Local Government Jawwad Rafique Malik and Secretary Information Momin Agha attended the meeting.
The CS directed the Health Department to ensure the snakebite and malaria vaccines in the affected areas. He maintained that mobile health teams should be sent to the areas affected with flood. He also instructed the livestock department to provide vaccination for animals in the flood affected areas of the province. The CS expressed his satisfaction over the flood arrangements in the province and said that no casualty was reported due to the timely evacuation of the people in the flood affected areas. He also reviewed the law and order situation in the flood affected areas. He directed the divisional commissioners and district administration of the areas concerned to provide drinking water to the people in the affected areas.
He was briefed that availability of funds for rehabilitation and relief activities has been ensured to the PDMA. The meeting was informed that stones and bags of sands were available at the banks of rivers and canals for use in case of emergency during possible flood. It was also informed that the flood warning centre was working round the clock and the people will be provided immediate information through electronic and print media about flood situation. The chief secretary instructed the administration to monitor the flow of water in rivers and water channels round the clock and immediately inform the concerned institutions in case of any emergent situation. He said that institutions concerned should maintain a close liaison with each other to control any untoward situation arising out of rains and potential floods.
Aslam further said that commissioners, district administration and concerned institutions should remain fully alert to cope with any emergency. He said that relief activities and rehabilitation work of the calamity-hit people was in full swing. He warned that no laxity or negligence would be tolerated in the relief and rehabilitation activities. He said that government functionaries should make all out efforts for the permanent rehabilitation of the affectees.
PDMA report: Provincial Disaster Management Authority Director General Capt (r) Muhammad Asif has said that three to four lakh cusecs of flood water has entered River Chenab last night. He said that due to timely arrangements and strategy of PDMA and district administration, flood water has passed from Sialkot, Gujranwala and Gujrat without any danger. He said that now this water will pass from Mandi Bahauddin, Hafizabad and Jhang and PDMA and district administration concerned have completed all arrangements to cope with any threat.
He said the PDMA has provided tents, food hampers, mineral water bottles, motor and fiber boats as well as medicines to the administrations of these districts. He said that all departments concerned have also set up their relief camps. He told that all hill torrents and nullahs of Sialkot and DG Khan are flowing normally.