KARACHI: The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has issued a weather alert, forecasting rain accompanied by thundershowers across various parts of the country, including Karachi, starting from September 18, 2023.
According to the Met Office, a low-pressure area (LPA) currently situated southeast of Rajasthan, India, is expected to track southwestwards over the next 48 hours. This weather phenomenon is likely to bring rain, strong winds, and thundershowers with moderate to isolated heavy falls to several regions.
Areas Expected to Experience Rain and Thundershowers:
- Tharparkar
- Umerkot
- Mirpurkhas
- Sanghar
- Khairpur
- Badin
- Sajawal
- Thatta
- Jamshoro
- Larkana
- Dadu
- Karachi
- Hyderabad
- Naushahro Feroze
- Shaheed Benazirabad
- Mitayari
- Tando Muhammad Khan
- Tando Allah Yar
Additionally, isolated locations in the following regions are also likely to witness rain from the evening of September 18 through to September 20:
- Sukkur
- Ghotki
- Qambar Shahdadkot
- Barkhan
- Sibbi
- Zhob
- Kalat
- Khuzdar
- Lasbella
- Awaran
The PMD further warned of wind-thunderstorms affecting Kashmir, Gilgit Baltistan, Islamabad, North & Eastern Punjab (including the Pothohar region, Murree, Galliyat, Sargodha, Gujranwala, Hafizabad, Mandi Bahauddin, Narowal, Sialkot, Lahore, Kasur, Sheikhupura, Faisalabad, Okara, Sahiwal, Bahawalnagar, and Bahawalpur), as well as Upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (including Dir, Swat, Chitral, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Kohistan, Mardan, Nowshera, Swabi, Peshawar, and Kohat) from the evening of September 18 to September 21, intermittently.
Impacts and Advisories
The PMD has outlined potential impacts of this weather event, including heavy to isolated falls that may lead to flooding in low-lying areas such as Thatta, Badin, Sajawal, Umerkot, Tharparkar, and Mirpurkhas from September 18 to 20.
Farmers have been advised to take precautionary measures to protect their crops, while tourists are urged to exercise caution to avoid any untoward incidents during this period.
The PMD emphasized that wind-thunderstorms may damage loose structures like electric poles and solar panels, urging the general public to seek shelter in safe locations during windstorms, lightning, and heavy rains.
All relevant authorities have been alerted and advised to remain vigilant and implement necessary precautionary measures throughout the forecasted weather event.
