Lahore/Multan/Bahawalpur: The flood situation in Punjab continues to worsen, as rescue boats capsized during relief operations in Jalalpur Pirwala and Alipur, resulting in the tragic deaths of at least three children and leaving nine individuals missing.

According to rescue sources, the boats were being used to transport relief goods and evacuate people from flood-affected areas. However, strong currents and unbalanced loads caused the vessels to overturn.

In a separate incident, the body of a 25-year-old man, Muhammad Jafar, was recovered from the floodwaters in Gardezi Pur, Multan. He had been missing for two days after attempting to save livestock from the rising waters.

City Police Officer (CPO) Multan, Sadiq Ali Dogar, stated that the temporary embankment built to protect Jalalpur Pirwala is under immense pressure, and residents are being urgently evacuated to safer locations. He added that 90% of the surrounding areas in the tehsil are submerged, and the town is now encircled by floodwaters.

At Bhakkar Patan on the Sutlej River, a high-level flood has wreaked further havoc. The breach of protective embankments has flooded areas including Rajika, Bahadurka Sharqi, and Qasimka. A total of 145 villages across a 150-kilometre river stretch have been severely affected.

So far, the floods have impacted over 2.1 million acres of agricultural land, with standing crops on 120,000 acres completely destroyed. Washed-away roads have cut off several villages from Bahawalnagar, while 34 government schools located in riverine areas have been closed indefinitely.