ISLAMABAD: Floodwaters continued to overwhelm central Pakistan on Thursday, raising the nationwide death toll to 884 and triggering urgent warnings of worsening conditions across Punjab and Sindh.
Authorities are weighing drastic measures to save Multan, including breaching the Chenab riverbank to divert water toward the city’s outskirts and reduce pressure on the river. Heavy rainfall in the Himalayas has fueled the deluge, with swollen rivers flooding homes, highways, and farmland. The meteorological office has warned that downpours will continue until September 9.
This year’s monsoon has been particularly fierce, killing nearly 900 people in Pakistan alone. The crisis has been compounded by India’s release of water from dams into shared rivers, raising flood levels downstream. Pakistani officials said New Delhi issued seven warnings in recent days, including three within 24 hours, about dam openings.
Irfan Ali Kathia, director-general of the Punjab Disaster Management Authority, confirmed that water from India’s Baglihar and Salal dams on the Chenab has worsened flooding. Additional warnings were issued regarding the Harike and Ferozepur headworks on the Sutlej.
According to the PDMA, reservoirs in Himachal Pradesh are nearing capacity. At Bhakra Dam on the Sutlej, the water level has risen to 1,679 feet, dangerously close to its maximum. Inflows at Harike Headworks have already crossed 347,000 cusecs.
Across Punjab, 1.8 million people have been evacuated as nearly 3,900 villages remain underwater. The National Disaster Management Authority reported new casualties in Swabi, Lahore, and Sheikhupura. Since late June, Punjab has recorded 223 deaths, while Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa is the worst-hit province with 489 fatalities.
Floods have damaged more than 9,200 homes, destroyed 239 bridges, and washed away 671 kilometers of roads nationwide. Nearly 6,200 livestock have been lost. Rescue operations continue on a massive scale: in Punjab alone, nearly one million people were saved within the last 24 hours. Relief efforts are distributing tents, food, mattresses, mosquito nets, tarpaulins, and life jackets.
Rivers breach embankments in Punjab
At Ganda Singh Wala in Kasur, a flood wave of over 319,000 cusecs submerged more than 100 villages and 18,000 acres of farmland. Breaches in protective embankments in Lodhran and Vehari left entire communities underwater.
The Ravi and Chenab rivers also caused destruction. In Kabirwala, makeshift levees collapsed, sending floodwaters into homes. In Multan, the Ravi reached the railway bridge, while in Shujaabad dozens of villages were engulfed. Breaches near Sidhnai and Rango displaced thousands more.
Meanwhile, Gujrat city suffered devastating urban flooding after 577 millimeters of rainfall in just 24 hours submerged streets, government offices, and markets under four feet of water. Mosques repeatedly urged residents to seek safer ground.
Relief Commissioner Nabeel Javed said more than 3.8 million people have been affected in Punjab, with half already evacuated. The PDMA reported that about 4,000 villages are submerged, 1.5 million people rescued, and over one million livestock moved to safety.
Agriculture has been hit hardest, with more than 1.3 million acres of crops destroyed, particularly in Faisalabad, Gujranwala, and Gujrat divisions. Officials warned the losses could cripple Punjab’s farming economy for years.
The Flood Forecasting Division said water levels remain critically high at Ganda Singh Wala on the Sutlej, Khanewal and Qadirabad on the Chenab, and Sidhnai on the Ravi. PDMA chief Irfan Ali Kathia warned that the next 24 hours will be crucial for Multan, where the combined flows of the Ravi and Chenab threaten nearby districts.
