LAHORE: The ninth and final spell of this year’s monsoon began across Punjab on Saturday, with the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) warning of urban flooding in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala and Faisalabad and landslides in Murree, Galiyat and other hill areas until September 17.
A PDMA Punjab spokesperson said rain is expected in most districts of the province during the spell. From Saturday until September 17, rain is forecast in Rawalpindi, Jhelum, Chakwal, Talagang and Attock.
Between September 14 and 17, showers are expected in Lahore, Sialkot, Sheikhupura, Narowal, Mandi Bahauddin, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Wazirabad, Hafizabad, Kasur, Okara, Nankana Sahib and Sargodha. Rain is also likely in Khushab, Mianwali, Noorpur Thal, Faisalabad, Jhang, Toba Tek Singh, Layyah, Bhakkar, Sahiwal, Dera Ghazi Khan, Multan and adjoining areas.
The Director General PDMA said landslides are feared in Murree, Galiyat and other mountainous belts, while urban flooding remains a live risk in Rawalpindi, Lahore, Gujranwala and Faisalabad. Flash flooding is also possible in seasonal nullahs, and alerts have been issued to all relevant departments.
The health, irrigation, communication and works, local government and livestock departments have been directed to take precautionary measures in advance.
PDMA has appealed to citizens to observe precautions during bad weather, to avoid living in dilapidated and mud-built houses, and to avoid unnecessary travel during storms, high winds or heavy rain. Residents have been advised to stay in safe locations to avoid lightning strikes.
Parents have been urged to keep children away from standing water in low-lying areas and away from electricity wires and poles, and to ensure they do not remain in the open during thunderstorms.
Separately, the Pakistan Meteorological Department issued an alert for the ninth and final monsoon spell, forecasting rain in Lahore from September 14 to 17 and directing relevant institutions to complete precautionary arrangements in advance.
The Met Office said there is a risk of urban flooding in Lahore because of the monsoon rains and that departments have been asked to keep the necessary arrangements in place. Weather in the city is expected to improve after the rain.
The city remained hot on Saturday, in line with The Lahore Times‘ daily weather and air quality tracker. The current temperature was recorded at 31 degrees Celsius, with the maximum expected to touch 36 degrees. Humidity was recorded at 69 per cent, with winds blowing at 8 kilometres per hour.
Anticipating the spell, Deputy Commissioner Lahore Capt (r) Muhammad Ali Ijaz visited Tehsil Ravi and reviewed administrative arrangements, sanitation and drainage on Baradari Road and in Begum Kot.
He was accompanied by CO MCL Kaleem Yousaf, Assistant Commissioner Ravi Humaira Shah, DMD WASA Abdullah Latif and representatives of allied departments.
The Deputy Commissioner directed that rainwater and standing water be drained immediately to prevent dengue breeding, and ordered further improvement in the sanitation system on Baradari Road and in Begum Kot. He instructed WASA officials to accelerate drainage in Begum Kot and to ensure the elimination of all stagnant water pools to stop the growth of dengue larvae.
Capt (r) Muhammad Ali Ijaz said all potential hotspots for dengue larvae breeding were being eliminated and that there would be no compromise on sanitation standards. Any delay or negligence in the drainage process, he said, would not be tolerated, and departments must take all necessary steps to provide relief to citizens.
The drainage orders follow a provincial push on vector control, with dengue surveys ordered inside government offices and a third-party audit sought of the Lahore campaign.
Public health experts note that the fortnight after the final monsoon spell is historically the most dangerous window for dengue transmission in Punjab, as receding rainwater leaves behind clean standing water in rooftop tanks, tyres, plant pots and construction sites — the preferred breeding sites of the Aedes aegypti mosquito. Lahore’s civic agencies typically shift from flood-response to anti-larva surveillance in this period, with the district administration running indoor and outdoor surveillance teams across all nine towns.
Urban flooding, meanwhile, remains a structural issue for Lahore, where rapid concretisation has reduced natural absorption and placed the burden on WASA’s disposal stations and the city’s ageing storm-water network. Officials say pre-positioned de-watering sets and standby generators at low-lying points are the main line of defence during the coming week.
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