The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) on Tuesday issued an alert after the Met Office predicted that monsoon rains would lash different parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) from tomorrow (Wednesday), reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

In a letter to the district administrations, the PDMA said that since more moist currents from the Arabian Sea would enter the upper parts of KP from July 10, therefore, heavy rains, accompanied by strong winds, were expected in most districts of the province from Wednesday to Monday.

“Intermittent rains have been forecast for Dir, Chitral, Swat, Kohistan, Malakand, Bajaur, Shangla, Battagram, Buner, Kohat, Bajaur, Mohmand, Khyber, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Haripur, Peshawar, Mardan, Charsadda, Hangu, Kurram, Waziristan, Bannu and Dera Ismael Khan,” the Authority said in the letter.  

It warned the district administrations that since torrential rains could result in landslides in mountainous areas of the province, they should make sure that the flow of traffic was not disrupted and roads were reopened for traffic as soon as possible.   

Similarly, it said that since rains and strong winds could also result in the loss of lives and damage to people’s properties, therefore, the administrations should take precautionary measures. “Make sure that small and large machinery is ready to deal with any unfortunate incident,” the PDMA said.

It also urged people to stay away from electric wires, crumbling structures, sign boards and billboards during the inclement weather.

The Authority asked the inhabitants of mountainous areas as well as the people visiting these areas to take precautionary measures so that they could protect themselves from the consequences of bad weather. “Tourists, in particular, should be informed of the weather conditions at hill stations.”

The PDMA said that its emergency center was open round the clock and the people could report any unfortunate incident to it by dialing 1700.

Reporter: Amir Shehzad