By Wasif Ali Khan
TWA
━━━━━━━
At least 63 people have been killed and more than 290 injured in Pakistan’s Punjab province following the most intense spell of this year’s monsoon rains, officials confirmed on Thursday.
The heavy downpour, which began on Wednesday, intensified overnight and continued into Thursday morning, lashing multiple cities including Chakwal, Mandi Bahauddin, Rawalpindi, and the capital, Islamabad.
Chakwal recorded a staggering 430 millimetres of rain in just 10 hours, triggering flash floods. Videos circulating on social media showed streets submerged and neighbourhoods inundated across the city.
In Rawalpindi, authorities declared a brief emergency after water levels in the Lai Nullah (storm drain) rose rapidly. Residents near the banks were urged to evacuate through loudspeaker announcements from mosques. The situation began to ease once the rains subsided later in the morning.
Footage from the Swaan River also showed dangerously high water flow, with many online users speculating that the deluge in Chakwal may have resulted from a rare cloudburst — an extreme weather event involving sudden, heavy rainfall.
Emergency response teams remain on high alert as further rainfall is expected in the coming days.
Author
Wasif Ali Khan, a seasoned journalist, currently serves as the Editor of The World Ambassador
