PESHAWAR
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority in collaboration with Irrigation department installed flood forecasting stations on five major rivers and two canals of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to forewarn the residents of natural disasters and ensure better coordination among the relevant departments and agencies for rescue and relief operations.
According to details issued by the PDMA here on Saturday the flood forecasting stations have been installed on five major rivers and two canals to monitor the flow of water in the rivers and canals.
The system has been installed on River Swat Khawaza Khila, Chakdara River, Panjkora River, Manda Headworks, Kabul Adezai Bridge Charsadda River, Kalpani Nallah Mardan, and Budhni Nallah Peshawar.
The automatic telemetry system, first of its kind, installed on the rivers and canals to establish accurate warning system to monitor the flood and rain forecast during the increasing level of water in the canals and rivers of the province.
The system will help the provincial government for acquiring early information about rains and flood and real-time updates regarding water levels in the aforementioned rivers and canals to prevent damage to public life and property.
The system through its digital screens installed in the emergency operations centers of irrigations department and PDMA would be used for data collection.
The screens would be kept functional through their automated solar energy systems, while staff required for data collection has also been deployed at the sites where the equipments have been installed.
“This push notification system equipped with modern requirements will not only prevent loss of lives but also facilitate communication between Provincial Emergency Operation Center, Control Rooms in District Offices and other relevant institutions,” said officials of PDMA.
Irrigation department officials claimed that the flood forecasting stations would help minimize communication gaps among the relevant government agencies at district and provincial levels.
They said that continuous stream flow forecast system would be of immense value for KP, since they provide useful information on available hydropower potential for meeting peak loads in addition to information on imminent flood in five most important rivers of the province.
Daily collection and compilation of flood forecast data from the station’s field staff would help the PDMA in preparation of daily flood updates during monsoon season, they added.
