Islamabad: At least 33 people have been killed and 25 others are missing after heavy rains and a cloudburst caused floods and landslides in several districts of northwestern Pakistan, officials said on Friday, local media reported.
Rescue teams worked amid difficult terrain and weather conditions as disaster hit several parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Floodwater swept through villages, destroying homes and cutting off access roads. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Rescue 1122 stated that 16 people were killed, three others were injured and seven remained missing, Pakistan’s leading daily The Express Tribune reported.
Local people helped rescue teams in finding the deceased and injured from debris and water. Search operations are being conducted with medical, diving, and other teams deployed at the site. Medical teams provided first aid to injured people on the spot before taking them to nearby hospitals while divers and specialised rescue units were deployed to help in search operations. Officials stated that relief work is being conducted despite facing challenges due to landslides and damaged infrastructure.
Five members of a household died in Dir Lower district’s Sori Paw area after their home collapsed due to heavy rain. Four others were injured in this incident.
As many as 10 people were also killed and 18 reported missing after floodwaters washed away several houses in Battagram district. Two people killed while another was injured after a car was swept away by flood in Mansehra’s Basiyaan region. According to authorities, multiple houses were destroyed in Bajaur and residents in some areas were forced to evacuate.
Other areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Pakistan-occupied Gilgit Baltistan (PoGB) also reported landslides. At least 10 people were killed due to landslides and flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains in PoGB, Pakistan-based Geo News reported. According to local authorities, three people, including a woman, were killed and three others remained missing in Khalthi valley of Ghizer district, where more than six houses were buried under debris.
A brother and sister were swept away by floodwaters in Diamer’s Bonar area, while a child was injured in a landslide on the Babusar road. Travel remained disrupted on the Baltistan and Sadpara road, while Thor in Diamer reported severe destruction due to landslides. Floods damaged a bridge on the Karakoram Highway in Kohistan, Geo News reported.
A total of 343 people have been killed and more than 740 others have been injured across the nation from the ongoing monsoon spell, which began on June 26, according to Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Eastern Punjab province of Pakistan has been the worst hit, with deaths of 164 people and more than 582 injured people.
(IANS)
