LAYYAH, July 30 Flood in Indus, Chenab and Jhelum rivers hit many areas of Layyah and Multan districts and put the district administrations of Dera Ghazi Khan and Jhang on high alert on Friday.

In Layyah district, 11 union councils spreading on more than 400,000 acres were struck by severe flood in Jinnah Barrage on the River Indus.

Irrigation officials at Jinnah Barrage told Dawn that water discharge from the reservoir at 8pm was 915,552 cusec - highest ever recorded at Jinnah Barrage. They said that breaches had been made in right and left dykes of the barrage to save it from a total collapse.

An irrigation official at Chashma Barrage said 851,393 cusec water was flowing downstream from the reservoir at 8pm.

Samtia, Warrah Sehran, Baseera, Shahdu Khan, Kotla Haji Shah, Lohanch Nashaib, Jhakhar, Bait Wasawa, Kot Sultan, Bakhri Ahmed Khan and Paharpur are the worst hit union councils having a population of more than 400,000. People are moving to safer places since Thursday on their own and with the help of the district administration.

According to agriculture officials, floods have washed away standing crops on 250,000 acres.

At least 14 relief camps have been set up for the displaced people. When this correspondent visited a relief camp set up at the Islamia High School, 368 persons of 40 families residing there said they had not been provided any food so far.

District Coordination Officer Javed Iqbal said adequate arrangements had been made for the flood affected people at the relief camps and they would get food as well as medicines.

At least 800,000 cusec floodwater was expected to pass through the riverine areas of the district at around 2am on Saturday.

In Multan, more than 97,000 cusec water flow in Chenab on Friday morning inundated several villages.

A medium level flood could hit various areas of the district if more than 200,000 cusec water from the River Jhelum and as much floodwater from the River Chenab flows into Trimun Barrage at the same time.

Irrigation officials said that highest discharge from Rasul Barrage on the River Jhelum on Friday was 263,765 cusec, while water discharge from Qadirabad Barrage on the River Chenab was 218,000 cusec. The officials said that water discharge from Head Marrala was gradually decreasing.

District Coordination Officer Khurram Agha said the administration was ready to deal with any emergency. He said 17 relief camps had been set up in the areas that could be hit by floods and relief work started in affected areas.

In Dera Ghazi Khan, the district government declared an emergency in anticipation of a high level flood in the River Indus, as 756,000 cusec floodwater was expected to pass through Taunsa Barrage on Saturday after 18 years.

District Coordination Officer Iftikhar Ali Sahu chaired a meeting on flood emergency here on Friday, with head of all departments in attendance. He was told that raging hill torrents were taking up the water level of the River Indus. He was informed that 35,000 cusec water from Sanghar hill torrent, 22,000 from Wahowa hill torrent and 20,000 from another hill torrent was flowing into the River Indus on Friday.

Irrigation Department's chief engineer Mehr Ameen told the meeting that water up to 800,000 cusec would pass through Taunsa Barrage. He said this much flow of water in the barrage could flood hundreds of villages in the riverine area.

The DG Khan DCO put irrigation, Rescue 1122 and civil defence officials on high alert in the wake of rising water level in the Indus River.

In Jhang, DCO Shahid Niaz visited a flood emergency centre at Trimun Bridge after reports of rising water level in the River Chenab. Army teams were called in to deal with any emergency.