ISLAMABAD – Blanketed by fog, Islamabad and most parts of Pakistan remained in the grip of a cold wave on Sunday.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has predicted the prevailing foggy conditions and cold weather to persist in Islamabad and most parts of Pakistan during the week.
In Islamabad, the mercury dropped to 01 degree Celsius, making Sunday the coldest day of this season.
Relative humidity during the morning was recorded at 91 per cent.
Leh remained the coldest place in the country where mercury dropped 12 C below freezing.
Dense fog/smog forced closure of portions of Motorways (Peshawar-Swabi, Swabi-Islamabad, Islamabad-Kallar Kahar, Kallar Kahar-Pindi Bhattian, Pindi Bhattian-Lahore, Pindi Bhattian-Faisalabad, Lahore-Abdul Hakim, Sialkot-Lahore, Faisalabad-Multan and Multan-Sukkur).
Less visibility also disrupted normal vehicular movement on the National Highway and other inter and intra-city roads.
It also affected flight operations and the schedule of passenger trains.
As per the synoptic situation, a shallow westerly system prevails over western parts of Pakistan.
Under these conditions, mainly cold and dry weather is expected in Islamabad and most parts of the country on Sunday evening/night, Monday and Tuesday.
Rain-wind/thunderstorm with snowfall over hills is expected in upper Balochistan and lower Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Dense fog/smog is likely to persist in Islamabad, Punjab (Rawalpindi, Attock, Chakwal, Bahawalpur, Sahiwal, Okara, Kasur, Lahore, Sialkot, Narowal, Gujranwala, Jhelum, Mangla, Faisalabad, Jhang, Sargodha, Mandi Bahauddin, Toba Tek Singh, Khanewal, Multan, Khanpur, Rahim Yar Khan, Hafizabad, Bhakkar, Layyah, Dera Ghazi Khan and surroundings), upper Sindh and plain areas of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa during the period.
Dense fog/smog may force the closure of Motorways and disrupt traffic on other inter and intra-city roads including the National Highway.
In Islamabad, the minimum temperature will likely remain between 00-02 C on Monday and 01-03 C on Tuesday.
