LAHORE: Punjab Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Director General (DG) Mudassar Waheed Malik has said that Punjab PDMA is in close contact with Meteorological Department to obtain latest information regarding weather situation on a daily basis to ensure preparedness in the wake of possible floods during monsoon season this year.
He said that PDMA is ready to cope with monsoon rains and possible floods. He added that 10 meetings of Cabinet Committee on Floods have been conducted so far.
He said in order to deal with any untoward situation like floods, Punjab PDMA has distributed 764 boats, 764 out board motors, 11000 life jackets, 4000 life rings, 13000 dewatering sets, 48000 tents, 49000 plastic mats, 43000 mosquito nets and 30 generator sets in flood prone districts of the province.
He further said that all the District Disaster Management Authorities are conducting meetings on regular basis. He said that Punjab PDMA, in collaboration with different district administrations, has also conducted mock exercises to combat any possible floods. “The idea was to check whether they could handle expected flood threats and handle rescue operations”, he added. He said that fire audit and a mock exercise have also been conducted at Muzaffargarh Warehouse of PDMA to prepare for any unpleasant situation arising out of the fire.
He said the employees of Muzaffargarh Warehouse are being trained in order to avoid any loss of lives and properties during the upcoming flood season. He said that such exercises can help improve the capacity of the departments who have to deal with emergency situations. He informed that Punjab CM Shehbaz Sharif has also reviewed the pre-flood arrangements by the Punjab PDMA and has expressed satisfaction with them.