Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Punjab is in close contact with Meteorological department and getting updates regarding weather situation on daily basis. Director General PDMA Punjab Mudassar Waheed Malik said here Friday the authority is prepared to cope with monsoon rains and possible floods.
In order to deal with any untoward situation, PDMA Punjab has distributed 764 boats, 764 OBMs, 11,000 life jackets, 4,000 life rings, 13,000 dewatering sets, 48,000 tents, 49,000 plastic mats, 43,000 mosquito nets and 30 generator sets in flood prone districts of the province, he added.
He further said all the District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMAs) were conducting meetings on regular basis. The PDMA Punjab in collaboration with administration concerned, had also conducted mock exercises to ensure preparedness in the wake of possible floods, he said, adding: "The idea was to check whether they could handle expected flood threats and handle rescue operations."
He further said fire audit and mock exercise had also been conducted at Muzaffargarh warehouse of PDMA as a preparedness activity to cater any unpleasant situation arising out of fire. He said the employees of Muzaffargarh warehouse were being trained in order to avoid any loss of lives and properties during the upcoming flood season.
He said such exercises could help improve the capacity of the departments who had to deal with emergency situations. He said Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had also reviewed the pre-flood arrangements. About 10 meetings of Cabinet Committee on Floods had been conducted so far, to ensure preparedness in the wake of possible floods during Monsoon season that year, he added.