ISLAMABAD: As a protracted dry spell puts strain on the supply of water to Islamabad and Rawalpindi, the Pakistan Meteorological Department on Monday forecast two rain spells in the Potohar region and upper parts of the country – Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Azad Jammu Kashmir – from Jan 28.

The first spell of rain which will start on Jan 28 will bring light precipitation, while the second spell from Jan 31 to Feb 3 will result in heavy rainfall over the period. “Western waves will bring rain in the country on January 27 and it will cause rain in Potohar and upper parts of the country on January 28 (Sunday); after the break of two days, another spell of rain will enter the region from January 31 till February 3,” a Met official told Dawn.

The official said that the foggy weather in the twin cities would last till the weekend, followed by rainfall in two separate spells. He said that fog started in Rawalpindi and Islamabad on Sunday night from 9pm and it continued in the twin cities till 5pm on Monday. “Sun overpowered the fog at 9am on Monday but fog again engulfed the city areas as well as the Islamabad International Airport,” he said.

He said that the minimum visibility was reduced to 50 metres in the urban areas while in the afternoon it increased to 2,000 metres. The situation, however, did not improve at the Islamabad airport. He said that thick fog would persist in Islamabad, plains of Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and upper parts of Sindh during the next few days.

“Similarly, daytime temperatures are likely to remain below normal in most parts of Punjab due to dense fog,” he added.

“Four flights from Islamabad to Gilgit-Baltistan were cancelled. More than 35 other domestic and international flights were delayed [due to foggy conditions],” said airport officials. They said that the runway visibility was too low in the early hours of Monday. “The fog in Punjab has badly affected the schedule of trains as well. Around 20 trains were late by up to five hours,” said a railways official posted at the Rawalpindi Railway Station.

On the other hand, fog also disrupted traffic on motorways.

Published in Dawn, January 23rd, 2024