In a severe escalation of Punjab’s flood disaster, a large section of the Multan-Sukkur Motorway (M5) near Jalalpur Pirwala has been completely washed away. This has severed a critical national infrastructure link and left the region isolated for the eighth consecutive day.
The breach, caused by relentless water pressure from the Sutlej River, has now consumed all six lanes of the motorway, halting all traffic between southern and central Punjab. This collapse has disrupted supply chains, stranded thousands of vehicles, and forced travelers onto dangerous alternate routes. An Irrigation Department spokesperson confirmed that this is the “second major breach to cripple the M5” and that emergency teams are working around the clock to stabilize the ground.
The disaster’s scale is immense, as the Sutlej River has created a 20 to 25 km-long inland lake between Gilani Road and the M5, submerging and damaging the highway along its entire length in the area. A district official stated that the damage could have been mitigated if a controlled breach had been made in time to divert the river water into the Chenab, but this decision was not taken.
As thousands of people were being evacuated from Multan, Lodhran, and Bahawalpur, rescue operations faced tragedy. In Muzaffargarh, a rescue boat capsized, resulting in one death, while another three members of a family drowned in a separate incident.
Multan’s district administration spokesperson, Waseem Yousuf, said that most flood relief camps in Multan city and Shujabad tehsil have been closed as affected people are returning home. However, camps in Saddar tehsil and Jalalpur Pirwala will remain open until the situation normalizes. He added that a survey is underway using modern technology to assess losses, and health teams are spraying affected areas to prevent disease.
In Muzaffargarh, the water level in the Chenab River has returned to normal, and flood victims are starting to return to their homes. The Director General of the Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), Irfan Ali Kathia, reported that the flood situation in most of Punjab’s rivers has normalized. According to a PDMA report, 127 citizens have lost their lives in the recent floods, and over 4.755 million people from 4,700 villages have been affected.
Relief Commissioner Nabeel Javaid provided an update on dam levels, stating that Mangla Dam is 96% full, Tarbela Dam is 100% full, and India’s Bhakra, Pong, and Thien dams are 88%, 99%, and 90% full, respectively.
