RAWALPINDI: Dense fog enveloped the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad on Saturday, disrupting early morning domestic and international flights, rail services and vehicular movement on city roads as well as on motorways.

The visibility remained 50 metres in various areas of the twin cities early in the morning, but it gradually improved later in the day. On the other hand, the fog had enveloped the Islamabad International Airport at 11pm on Friday night.

According to an official of the Meteorological Department, current cold wave with fog will grip the country, including the Potohar region, on Sunday (today) as well.

Talking to Dawn, the official said the intensity of the cold wave and fog would decrease slowly by the end of next week.

Flight, train schedule disrupted; Met Office says no chances of rain until Jan 28

He said the weather across the country would remain cold and dry, and foggy conditions are likely to continue in plain areas of Punjab, Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhawa.

He further said there was no sign of immediate rains in the coming days, adding that the twin cities might receive some rains after Jan 28.

He said the minimum temperature in Rawalpindi and Islamabad was recorded at 2 degree Celsius.

The recent cold wave and foggy condition have already made the living conditions difficult in the twin cities with people already suffering due to power load shedding and low pressure of gas.

In these circumstances, the number of people complaining of cold-related ailments has also shot up over the last few days.

According to the doctors working in various city hospitals, elderly persons and children are found to be the most affected people.

“The majority of the patients we get in the hospital daily arrive with complaints related to extreme cold conditions. We have been getting more than 100 patients on daily basis,” said a senior doctor at Benazir Bhutto Hospital.

Doctors are advising the people to keep themselves warm, cover their heads and ears and increase liquid intake, especially soups, to minimise the effects of dry cold.

Traders in Rawalpindi’s Saddar area have been complaining about low business due to decrease in the number of customers for the last many days.

Sheikh Riaz, a shopkeeper at Saddar, said the people were not visiting markets in the evening, and “we have no option, but to close our shops after Maghrib prayers.” He said the business community was already suffering from a financial crunch in the country, and the weather conditions had further added their miseries.

Meanwhile, the thick blanket of early-morning fog also affected routine activities and all means of transportation, including roads, airports and railways. Trains coming from Karachi, Quetta and Lahore arrived late in Rawalpindi due to fog.

Meanwhile, flight operations of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and some other airlines were also affected by persistent fog and poor visibility as a number of flights were diverted, delayed or cancelled which caused inconvenience to the travelers.

The PIA announced a change in flight schedule for Saturday due to heavy fog as even at 12 noon visibility was less than 150 meters in Islamabad which is considered to be unsafe for Airbus A320 flights.

According to a PIA spokesman, flights arriving in Islamabad from Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and Al-Qasim were diverted to Lahore due to bad weather conditions. He said Skardu flights (PK 451/452), Dubai flights (PK 211/212, 233) and Karachi flight (PK 308) were cancelled. In addition, Dubai to Lahore flight (PK-236) was also canceled while Riyadh to Lahore flight (PK-726) was diverted to Karachi.

He said the PIA management had been taking steps to minimize inconvenience to passengers of the affected flights and requested them not to insist on operating flights during fog.

Similarly, a number of domestic and international flights of private airlines were also delayed or cancelled due to bad weather conditions in Islamabad.

However, the flights at Islamabad International Airport resumed their regular schedule after improvement in weather conditions in the evening.

On Saturday morning, the motorway from Kot Momin to Islamabad (M-2) and Peshawar to Islamabad (M-1) were closed by the National Highway and Motorway Police (NHMP), and it was opened at 11am.

A spokesman for the NHMP has advised commuters to stay informed about weather conditions and plan their travel accordingly.

He also advised people to contact the NHMP helpline at 130 or check their official social media platforms before starting their journey.

Apart from the dense fog, growing air pollution is also contributing to the hazardous smog, which not only reduces visibility but also poses a significant threat to people’s health.

Published in Dawn, January 21st, 2024