Intermittent rain continued lashing in provincial metropolis Lahore for the second consecutive day on Thursday, paralysing the normal routine of the citizens. The continuous rain for two days added to the chill cold weather, while also compounding problems for those living in less affluent areas.
According to Met office, the recent rain in Lahore and other parts of Punjab, as well as the country, is a part of the second spell of winter rain which entered Pakistan two weeks ago, while the recent spell of rain in Lahore will stop within the next 12 hours.
Like Wednesday, the spell of intermittent rain started on Thursday night and continued throughout the day adding to the suffering of the citizens, as massive traffic jams were observed on almost all the major roads of the city. The torrential downpour was witnessed in all parts of the city, including Airport, Mall Road, Ferozpur Road, Jail Road, Lakshmi Chowk, Garden Town, Gulberg, Johar Town, Samanabad, DHA, Wapda Town, and other areas which transformed almost all adjacent streets and roads to lakes.
This situation caused problems for dwellers to reach their destinations as low attendance was witnessed in most of the offices and schools. Traffic police in the provincial capital failed to keep the traffic flowing smoothly in the city. It was claimed in a statement that traffic police worked efficiently to keep the traffic flowing on roads by creating diversions at different points. However, the ground reality quickly exposed the tall claims of traffic officials.
The worse situation of traffic gridlock was observed at Orange Line Metro Train route and its adjacent areas –where construction work became the reason of commuters’ suffering—while the muddy ways also caused to halt the flow of traffic. Several motorcycles and vehicles broke down on roads, as a result of continuous downpour, multiplying citizens’ problems. The situation for pedestrians wasn’t any better either as they had to traverse through muddy and slippery roads. The overflowed rainwater entered inside many houses located in low-lying areas where people were observed draining out water from their houses.
The low-lying areas where rainwater had accumulated included Tajpura Scheme, Lakshmi Chowk, Misri Shah, Wasanpura, Multan Road, Chauburji, Mozang Chungi, Muslim Town, Samanabad, Gulberg, New Garden Town, Town Ship, Lahore Railway Station, Lahore General Hospital, Peco Road, Shahdara, Bhatti Gate, Kashmir Road, Chowk Nakhuda, Aziz Road, Eik Moria Pul, Do Moria Pul, Sheranwala Gate, Garhi Shahu, Begumpura, UET, Mughalpura, Shalimar Link Road, Sandha, Shahjamal, Ichhra, Islampura and GPO Chowk on the Mall while a few areas of Defence, Model Town, Johar Town.
Commercial activities in the city came to a halt as the major shopping centres of the city, including Mall Road, Hall Road, Rang Mahal, Ichra Bazaar, Shahalam Market, Liberty, Anarkali, Brandreth Road and Lakshmi Chowk, were affected by rain.
Standstill rainwater was observed in many hospitals of the city which added to the problems of the patients and visitors.
People that regularly commute on Metro Bus service also lamented water standing on the pathways, especially around the large stairways creating a hazardous situation. Ali Khan, a regular commuter, told Pakistan Today: “I was aghast to see large puddles of water around the metro stations. The janitorial staff was sitting idly despite huge puddles of water around the stairways. Anyone could’ve slipped, which would’ve led to certain death or a debilitating injury, but I didn’t notice any urgency to clean it.”
Rescue sources told Pakistan Today that no big untoward incident due to rain was reported on Thursday. However, they informed that road accidents were reported of minor injuries.
Moreover, three cows got electrocuted in Thokar Niaz Baig area due to the falling of electric wires in rain water. The recent rain spell also lashed in other cities of the Punjab, including Kasur, Shiekhupura, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Narowal, Gujranwala, Faisalabad and Sahiwal.
According to Met office, Lahore’s Airport area was at the top as it received 28 mm rainfall while 14 mm rainfall was monitored at Punjab University and 12 mm at the city.
