Death Toll Rises To 1061 As Devastating Floods Sweep Country.

Flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains across much of Pakistan have killed over 1,061 people and displaced thousands more.

Powerful flash floods in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa caused the Kabul River to swell, sweeping away bridges overnight, cutting off some districts from road access.

Downstream, fears of flooding around the river banks prompted thousands in the district of Charsadda to flee their homes, according to disaster officials, with some spending the night on highways with their livestock, miles away from their inundated villages and towns.

The picturesque Kalam Valley in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province is one of the areas most affected by the rains and flooding. Waters from overflowing rivers swept away entire buildings, including an iconic hotel.

The monsoon season, which began earlier than normal this year, has lashed Pakistan with particularly heavy rains and rescuers have struggled to evacuate thousands of marooned people from flood-hit areas. The crisis forced the government to declare a state of emergency.

Historic monsoon rains and flooding have damaged more than 950,000 homes while over 800,000 animals were killed. Over 3,400km of roads and about 150 bridges were severely damaged.

In Balochistan all 34 districts of the province were badly affected by heavy rain and flooding and road networks were destroyed and bridges washed away and relief was only possible by deploying helicopters, which are not often able to operate because of bad weather.

Provincial officials have confirmed over 250 deaths but the...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT