TOBA TEK SINGH: Six people died and 26 were injured in rain-related incidents in Faisalabad and Bahawalpur as torrential rain kept lashing parts of Punjab for the third consecutive day on Monday.

In Faisalabad, two persons died and 20 were injured as the building of a two-storey hotel collapsed near the General Bus Stand.

District Emergency Officer Ehtsham Wahla told the media that 20 people were rescued after removal of heavy debris. He said two persons had already died while 12 critically wounded were shifted to district headquarters (DHQ) hospital and Allied Hospital for treatment. The others with minor injuries were given first aid by Rescue 1122, he said and added that 35 rescuers took part in the operation.

The deceased were identified as Ashfaq Ahmad (42) of Sadiqabad, Rahim Yar Khan, and Imran Nasim (45) of Sakhi Sarwar, Dera Ghazi Khan.

Building of two-storey hotel collapses in Faisalabad

The 12 injured, shifted to the hospitals, included Muhammad Fiaz (40) of Tibba Sultanpur, Vehari, Faizan Asghar (35) and Huzzaifa Akram (21) both of Multan, Salamat Masih of Faisalabad, Abdul Karim (60) and Idrees Boota (50) of Mirpur Khas (Sindh), Altaf Saleem (36) of Bahawalnagar, Ghulam Nabi (35) of Sadhar, Faisalabad, Khalid Mahmood (43) of Jaranwala, Shahbaz Hanif (50) of Gulfishan Colony,Faisalabad, Qaiser Abbas (25) of Toba Tek Singh and Zafar Iqbal (26) of Gojra.

In another incident, two elderly men died when the roof of a dilapidated building collapsed on them at Hassan Chowk on the Millat Road.

The deceased were identified as Muhammad Ashraf (60) of Millat Town and Umer Hayat (65) of Jhang.

In the third incident, two women received injuries as a result of the fall of the roof of a room in a house in Chak 189/RB, Rasoolpur in Chak Jhumra tehsil of Faisalabad. The women, identified as Rani Bibi (50) and her daughter Safina Bibi (25), were admitted to the Allied Hospital.

In the fourth rain-related incident, the wall of a house fell on a man in Zeenat Town on Sargodha Road. The incident left Hayat Khan (45) seriously injured and he was shifted to the Allied Hospital.

The wall of a house collapsed at Chak 239/GB in Jaranwala tehsil of Faisalabad. A young man, identified as Khalid Ameer (20), received injuries. He was shifted to the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, Jaranwala.

BAHAWALPUR: The torrential downpour on the third consecutive day claimed two lives and injured as many in the incidents caused by the rain, which left a big sinkhole near Khokha Market at the General Bus Stand (GBS) on Multan Road and damaged dozens of houses.

According to Rescue 1122, a two-year child, identified as Ali Hamza, of a gypsy family camping near Bairiwala Khoo on the Jhangiwali Road drowned after falling into a ditch filled with rainwater.

A teenage boy drowned in a rainwater drain at Uch Sharif. Thirteen-year-old Husnain drowned in a nullah, which was overflowing due to the rain in the Khairpur Daha area of Basti Hafiz Kamal.

In Lodhran district’s Basti Thakrwala near Pathnwala, Muhammad Shahid (37) and Muhammad Ishaque (27) suffered serious injuries in a roof collapse. Rescuers shifted them to the DHQ hospital.

The heavy rain created a dangerous deep sinkhole on the Multan Road. The rescuers cordoned off the affected portion of the road to avoid any accident.

Divisional Commissioner Raja Jahangir Anwar, accompanied by Assistant Commissioner Liquat Gilani and MC staff, rushed to the place and ordered the MC officials and sanitary staff to take measures to fill the sinkhole. The commissioner also visited the rain-affected areas and damaged buildings like veterinary hospital and slaughterhouse.

GUJRAT: The heavy rain, once again, exposed the poor drainage system of Gujrat as almost all the city roads remained inundated with rainwater even hours after the rain stopped.

People could not leave their houses as the roads and streets were submerged in rainwater till night despite the fact that the rain had stopped at around 1pm on Monday.

The areas like Rehman Shaheed Road, Jinnah Road, Court Road, Bhimbher Road, Jail Chowk, Main Muslim Bazaar, Shadman and Marghzar colonies were among the worst-hit where a large number of vehicles were stuck. Rainwater entered the houses on Qamar Sialvi Road, Alipura Road, Shadman Colony, Circular Road, Railway Road, Ramatalai Road and Sargodha Road.

The markets and shopping plazas on the Court Road remained shut as the roads were inundated with rainwater. The compound of District Complex and even the municipal corporation’s office were no-go areas.

Sewerage of Gujrat has been unable to cope with the urban flooding for the last four decades as successive governments failed to resolve the issue.

PPP Gujrat former district president Mian Fakhar Mushtaq Pagganwala lodged a protest while standing in the rainwater on Jinnah Road, asking those who ruled the city for decades to be answerable to the public. He vowed to organise the citizens for launching a protest drive against the administration and civic authorities.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2022