ISLAMABAD: Vast swathes of Muzaffargarh, Multan, Bahawalpur and Bahawalnagar were inundated on Thursday as exceptionally high flood at Panjnad — the confluence of the Chenab and Sutlej — continued to worsen the situation in southern Punjab.
By 3pm, the Flood Forecasting Division (FFD) reported waterflow at Panjnad at 660,350 cusecs after peaking at 668,195 cusecs earlier in the day — the highest discharge of the season. At 11pm, flow was recorded at 666,544 cusecs.
Authorities said the sustained pressure from record-breaking inflows had weakened embankments across the region, with several dykes washed away in Jhang, Multan and Bahawalnagar during the last 24 hours. Many villages have since been cut off, leaving boats, helicopters — and in some areas, cargo drones capable of carrying up to 100kg — as the only means of rescue.
Eighteen people drowned in separate incidents in southern Punjab on Wednesday and Thursday, while two others remained missing.
In Bahawalpur, a boat carrying 22 passengers capsized in the Sutlej near Chak Lalika. Rescuers saved most of those on board but two remain unaccounted for. Officials said the vessel was overloaded.
In Jalalpur Pirwala, rescuers recovered nine bodies after a similar incident on Wednesday night. Nineteen passengers were pulled to safety, though four of the dead were siblings. Nine more lives were lost in separate flood-related accidents near Liaquatpur in Rahim Yar Khan.
Meanwhile, authorities deliberately breached the Jalalpur Pirwala–Uch Sharif Road to protect Jalalpur Pirwala town, diverting water into sparsely populated areas. Despite the move, fears persist that the main protective embankment may not withstand the continuing pressure.
The army and rescue services have so far evacuated around 15,000 people from Jalalpur Pirwala in what officials described as the largest rescue operation in the country’s history.
Floodwaters from the Sutlej have also reached the outskirts of Bahawalpur city, submerging surrounding villages and forcing residents to flee.
Sindh situation
Although the Indus River was flowing at medium flood levels at Guddu and Sukkur on Thursday, breaches occurred at dykes in Ghotki (upper Sindh) and Naushahro Feroze (central Sindh), inundating several settlements.
At Guddu, the water discharge was 506,433 cusecs, while Sukkur registered 450,150 cusecs.
