'Roads cleared' hours after cloudburst flooded Islamabad streets

ISLAMABAD: The district administration in Islamabad has announced that roads in the federal capital have been cleared after being inundated for hours following a cloudburst that led to massive flooding in the city, ARY NEWS reported on Wednesday.

According to details shared from the Twitter handle of the deputy commissioner Islamabad Hamza Shafqaat, the water has been cleared from the E-11 sector of the capital that saw the most flooding.

All roads are cleared for traffic in Islamabad

— Office of Deputy Commissioner Islamabad (@dcislamabad) July 28, 2021

It shared that civil administration along with the armed forces are involved in the rescue operation in the E-11 sector and using heavy machinery to drain the water from the streets.

The traffic police also shared an update that all roads in Islamabad have been opened for traffic and are witnessing the usual flow.

The deputy commissioner further announced that the spillways of Rawal Dam will be opened to allow water to flow into River Swan and River Korang. “The inhabitants alongside the rivers have been advised to stay away from the river banks owing to rising levels,” Hamza Shafqaat said.

It is pertinent to mention here that the overnight lashing of Islamabad left the city at the mercy of torrential streams inducing fears of high-level flooding of Lai Nullah as Army teams and resources turn up to rescue people.

The Islamabad deputy commissioner office has released a tweeted update earlier today noting, “Cloudburst in Islamabad has caused flooding in various areas.”

“All the teams are in the field to clear excessive water,” the office said adding that the machinery is working on maximum locations for clearance.

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Army media, has earlier said rescue teams of the forces have reached the areas worst affected by the submergence due to rains and streams.

The flooding situation has cropped up in Lai Nullah, Sector E11 for the rescue of which Army teams have been instated to rescue people.