What I typed instantly into the Twitter box when I read the news is perhaps the most genuine comment that can be made on the behalf of the citizens of Lahore and indeed, Pakistan.

Marsonearth on Twitter:

Prayers for #Moscow from #Lahore – there are no words that will lessen your grief. http://bit.ly/9Y7Doe

Now, a humble request to the Weather Department in the sky; what us Lahoris would really appreciate is some rain showers. To be specific, as I am aware there were some parts that received some drizzle action last night–we would like some proper downpour.  You know, like Islamabad got some and everyone knows Lahore is way cooler–so spread the love!  *grin*

Watch your step!

Resistance is Futile--You are completely surrounded!

Well dear readers, these are some of the clearer photos I was able to capture for you earlier this morning.  I hope they get the point across–as they say–’a picture is worth a thousand words’.   :)

(the fine print: All photos taken by myself  with the aid of my trusty cellphone camera)

To our readers who are about to head out–please be safe, drive slowly, use your fog lights and most importantly, your common sense.

For those lounging at home, in a sea of woolly shawls and sipping on Kashmiri chai (tea)-enjoy the weather!

By the way dear readers– Doesn’t it seem like a scene out of a paperback mystery novel? Hah! I simply can not help being intrigued by the fog. :)

Then you might want to check out  the Google Mapping ‘party’ taking place at FAST-NU this Saturday, 2nd  January, 2010. 

Sneak peak at what its all about— Badshahi Mosque and neighborhood.

Some information from the organizers:

Greetings!

FAST-NU and the Google Map Maker Community in Pakistan officially invite you to a half-day of discussion, interaction and mapping fun! Google Map Maker is an open editing tool for Google Maps, and has allowed crowd-sourced mapping of Pakistan on an unprecedented scale, as highlighted by Google.
In order to take stock of what has been accomplished so far, and more importantly, what opportunities lie ahead, FAST-NU’s ACM (Association for Computing Machinery) Chapter welcomes Google to campus to host a workshop and discussion on crowd-sourced mapping of our cities. Take a look at the links below to see Lahore’s map on Google Maps today, to see how Badshahi Mosque’s neighborhood has been mapped, for example.
Now, help shape the opportunities which lie ahead for Pakistan’s urban development using maps, the internet and the power of collective public thinking.
Join us on the 2nd of January, 2010 from 12:30pm to 5:00pm, at FAST-NU (see it on the map)
….(click here to read the rest on the event page on Facebook)

For further information and to register–click here.

Important: You must pre-register at http://local.com.pk/mappingparty  to join in all the fun on Saturday!

If you attend–do come back to share your experience here on Lahore Metblog. :)

However, the prolonged loadshedding schedule and additional outages ensured that Lahoris came  back down to earth.

Lets take for example the community I reside in–where on average we experience ‘schedule loadshedding’ for 10 hours a day. This translates into not having electricity in our homes about every hour or so–throughout the day–without consideration for weekdays or weekends.

With such a situation, all our basic electrical appliances have either died or been sent to the local repairman. List includes the washing machine, refrigerator, microwave, so and so forth. This is ridiculous, to say the least.

In the wake of this major rainfall today in the city, our local trusty LESCO bunch added another hour of loadshedding. Yes, ADDED!  When we called to ask whether this was due to a fault in the local grid network, a rather disgruntled LESCO employee said that an hour had been officially added to the schedule–and that we will probably face another increase in our monthly electricity bills–as well!  When we expressed our disapproval, he said that the higher-ups are the ones making the call and that the location he went home to often did not get electricity for 8 straight hours!

Navigating our way through the LESCO complaints directory, we got through another LESCO employee–this time a bit higher up in the pecking order.  According to LESCO employee number two, the higher ups believe that there are not any complaints and that people are okay with the current situation of power supply (wow that is an ironic phrase–’power supply’). 

Umm, Lahoris, are we OK with what is going on? Are we OK with our hard earned money going down the drain every month–when we pay for a service that we barely recieve?  Are we OK with spending hours listening to whirring generators/ups ?

I doubt that.  But what I think the problem is that somehow, the complaints are not getting through. Is there not enough media coverage? Possibly. Is there not enough public outcry? No, people are making their point.

 I know this sentiment is not new, nor is the situation unfamiliar to those residing in Pakistan–but the point being, something must be done.

My recommendation:

Call the SDOs, the XENs  responsible for the electricity supply in your neighborhood. Here is the LESCO website link. 

Keep tab of the scheduled loadshedding–everytime unscheduled loadshedding takes place, try to lodge a formal written complaint.

Get the neighbors involved–have them do the same.

Communicate your plight, your problem, your discomfort with the current electricity loadshedding schedule. Write an email, a letter to the editor, or to a member of the provincial assembly.  I am sure there are those of you who have family members relying on vital life support machines, or even breathing aids such as nebulizers–all which are run by electricity.

If you have more ideas, please share with us in the comments section.

Remember, this an essential service that you are paying for and that you deserve customer service.

Enjoy!

So far, 4 people have died and 8 have been injured. Do check up on your loved ones and Stay safe.

ARY News

The Lahore CCPO’s office and the Rescue 15 center were targeted–both show signs of severe destruction.  The Rescue 15 building is located on Fatima Jinnah Road–formerly known as Queens Road. The Police have said that 25 people were inside the building when the blast occured.

As is the case in such scenarios, there are conflicting counts for those injured or killed in this incident.  Geo TV’s website reports 10 killed and 83 injured.  However, according to Edhi’s services, 30 people have been killed so far.   According to the DCO Lahore, 23 people have died due to the blast.

TV news reports say 3 security personnel are among the dead.  Watching Express 24/7, they say 120 to 130 people have been injured but that the numbers come from two main hospitals serving the victims right now, which includes Ganga Ram Hospital.  The casualties are expected to rise.

Emergency crews are continuing to pull people out of the rubble–and aerial surveillance is also underway at the site. Markets in the surrounding areas have been closed down.

Those in Lahore have been requested to donate blood.  Contact 042-756-8724 or 8725 to find out more about the donation process.

Two suspects arrested by the police

According to DCO Lahore Sajjad Bhutta, this was a suicide car bombing. 2 suspects have been arrested by the local police. Eyewitness reports also confirm the incident as a car bombing.

Earlier this morning, I turned on the TV–when the news came of this blast in Lahore.  At the time, 150 people were reported injured–and children are trapped inside St. Anthony’s school near the Mall.  Now it is reported the students have been sent home with their family members.

It is reported that 35 adjacent buildings have been damaged by the intensity of the blast. Also, that the explosion created a crater 20 feet deep at the site.

I also heard that the windows for Quaid-e-Azam library have been shattered. Friends on Facebook who work near the area also reported shattered windows, falling ceilings.

Blast Site

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Razas Gilani have both condemned the attack.

We here at Lahore Metblogs will keep updating this–as more information comes in.

Do pray for those affected by this tragic incident.

Some news sources for those interested: 

• Dawn  , specifically this story
• Geo TV, specifically this article