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Heavy monsoon downpours battered Lahore on Saturday, leaving the city's crumbling infrastructure completely overwhelmed as rainwater submerged low-lying localities, major thoroughfares and key underpasses, halting urban mobility across the provincial capital, Dawn reported.
The severe deluge threw daily life out of gear, exposing the administration's persistent failure to manage seasonal rainfall as motorists struggled to navigate flooded stretches and pedestrians were forced to wade through heavily waterlogged streets. According to data released by the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) and cited by Dawn, the city logged an average of 24.6mm of rainfall, with the highest concentration recorded at the airport at 104mm. Other severely affected areas included Kahna with 75.6mm, Hadiara Defence Road with 62.6mm and Manawan with 58.6mm. Additional regional breakdown figures showed Tajpura SDO office registering 40.2mm, Mughalpura 32.8mm, Shadipura 28.4mm, Nishter Town 28mm, Chowk Nakhuda 11mm and Johar Town 11mm. The WASA headquarters in Gulberg recorded 10.8mm, while Upper Mall saw 9mm, Samanabad 4.4mm, Iqbal Town 3.8mm, Saggian 3.8mm, Lakshmi Chowk 3.2mm, Jail Road 2mm, Gulshan-e-Ravi 1.8mm, Farrukhabad 1.4mm and Pani Wala Talab recorded trace rainfall. Despite routine municipal claims, widespread inundation hit Farrukhabad, Tajpura, Defence Phase-VI, Shadipura, Saggian, Lakshmi Chowk and Harbanspura, underlining the chronic vulnerability of local drainage systems to routine monsoon spells. Faced with mounting public frustration over sub-par civil arrangements, WASA Lahore deployed field staff and machinery to clear submerged corridors, Dawn reported. WASA Managing Director Ghufran Ahmed inspected emergency operations at Mubeen Shaheed Underpass, Noor Jehan Road, MM Alam Road, Main Boulevard Gulberg, Qaddafi Stadium and Liberty Chowk. Ahmed further inspected site conditions at Kalma Chowk Underpass, Garden Town Water Tank, Usman Block Emergency Relief Camp and Usman Block Disposal Station. Civic officials acknowledged that several emergency disposal stations had to be run on backup generators due to sudden power outages across the city's unstable electricity grid, while WASA Vice Chairman Chaudhry Shehbaz Ahmed reviewed clearance attempts at Shalimar Link Road, Bhagwanpura, Baghichi Sethan, UET, Ek Moriya, Do Moriya and Chowk Na Khuda. Highlighting the risky transit conditions caused by civic lapses, Chief Traffic Officer (CTO) Abdul Rahim Shirazi instructed supervisory staff to stay on field duty and track water accumulation across key intersections, Dawn noted. Traffic police issued urgent advisories warning motorists to maintain low speeds, keep safe distances and avoid sudden braking on slick road surfaces. Motorcyclists were cautioned to wear helmets and avoid overtaking in deep water. Commuters were further warned to gauge water depth before attempting to cross flooded stretches, while authorities cautioned citizens to steer clear of exposed electric poles, transformers, loose power cables, trees, weak walls and hazardous under-construction structures. (ANI)
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