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Interactive Maps Installed at Madinah Book Fair to Enrich Visitors' Experience, Facilitate Searches

The third edition of Madinah Book Fair kicked off on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia. (SPA)
The third edition of Madinah Book Fair kicked off on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia. (SPA)
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Interactive Maps Installed at Madinah Book Fair to Enrich Visitors' Experience, Facilitate Searches

The third edition of Madinah Book Fair kicked off on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia. (SPA)
The third edition of Madinah Book Fair kicked off on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia. (SPA)

The Madinah Book Fair integrated modern technologies to facilitate visitors' searches for books, participating publishers, or exhibition areas hosting various activities, the Saudi Press agency said on Thursday.
Through interactive maps, similar to GPS navigation maps, that are installed throughout the fairgrounds, visitors can locate publishers and authors and can also navigate all areas of the fair by scanning Quick Response (QR) codes on their mobile devices, including the main stage, workshop areas, children's zone, book signing platforms, restaurants and cafes, restrooms, prayer areas, and others.
The interactive touch-enabled maps spread throughout the exhibition operate with advanced technology, allowing visitors to search for specific publishers and obtain detailed information such as their names, the booth number where they are located, the distance to reach them, and the estimated time required.

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Pakistan's Cultural Capital Sees Record Rainfall

Motorcyclists drive through a flooded road caused by heavy monsoon rainfall in Lahore, Pakistan, Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)
Motorcyclists drive through a flooded road caused by heavy monsoon rainfall in Lahore, Pakistan, Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)
TT
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Pakistan's Cultural Capital Sees Record Rainfall

Motorcyclists drive through a flooded road caused by heavy monsoon rainfall in Lahore, Pakistan, Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)
Motorcyclists drive through a flooded road caused by heavy monsoon rainfall in Lahore, Pakistan, Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

Pakistan’s cultural city of Lahore saw record-high rainfall early Thursday, leaving at least one person dead, while flooding streets, disrupting traffic and affecting normal life, officials said.

The downpour started before dawn and is expected to continue for a week at intervals, according to the National Disaster Management Authority. In an advisory, it said the rains are likely to cause flash flooding and landslides, The AP reported.

The monsoon rains also lashed Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad, and other areas.

The latest spell of rains in Lahore was so heavy that it quickly flooded many streets and rainwater entered some wards in the Jinnah and Services hospitals in the capital of Punjab province, causing problems for patients undergoing treatment there.

At least one person died after being electrocuted in the Nishat Colony neighborhood, police said.

Some areas in the city received a record-high 353 millimeters (14 inches) of rainfall in a few hours, breaking a 44-year-old record in Lahore, according to the water and sanitation agency. In a statement, it said efforts were underway to pump rainwater off of main roads.

Drainage systems quickly became overwhelmed after the rains, flooding several residential areas, officials said. The rainwater entered scores of homes in various parts of the city, residents said.

Monsoon rains have returned to Pakistan as the country is still struggling to recover from devastating 2022 floods that affected 33 million people and killed 1,739. But weather forecasters say the country will receive less heavy rains compared to 2022, when climate-induced downpours swelled rivers.

Pakistan recorded its wettest April since 1961, with more than double the usual rainfall for the month. Weather forecasters and scientists have blamed climate change for the unusually heavy monsoon rains.

In neighboring Afghanistan, authorities on Thursday were dealing with a different kind of weather event, warning people against leaving their homes because of high temperatures.

Fawad Ayoubi, a forecast officer at the country’s aviation department, said people should go out before 10 a.m. and after 4 p.m. if they needed to leave the house.

“The temperature will increase in northern and northwestern provinces as well as southwestern provinces,” said Ayoubi. “The reasons are the monsoon or hot weather from India that is affecting Afghanistan.”

The World Health Organization also shared advice on how Afghans could protect themselves in the warmer weather. It said people should wear a wide-brimmed hat or hat and sunglasses, to eat small meals and more often, and to avoid leaving children in parked cars.

Associated Press