Peshawar: Eight people have been killed and 12 others injured in the past three days due to rain-related incidents in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, a report by the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said on Sunday, as the meteorological department warned of floods and landslides in the country’s northern parts.
Heavy rains and snowfall last week damaged hundreds of houses and bridges and shut off road and rail routes in several areas of Pakistan, especially in KP. As per the PDMA’s latest report, four children, three men and one woman were among the eight casualties while the 12 injured included four women, six men and two children.
It said that 85 houses were affected in various districts of the province when their walls and roofs collapsed due to heavy rain. Of these, 15 houses were destroyed while 70 were damaged.
“Due to heavy rain, accidents and financial losses were reported in various districts such as upper and lower Dir, lower Chitral, Swat, Bajaur, Shangla, Mansehra, Mohmand and Malakand,” the report.
It added that KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur had directed the relevant district administrations and institutions to provide immediate assistance to the affected families and instructed them to ensure the provision of best medical facilities to those injured in rain-related incidents.
The PDMA said it is in contact with the district administrations throughout the province and has instructed them to speed up relief operations.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) issued a press release on Monday warning that heavy rains could cause floods in the streams and rivers near Azad Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, Murree, Galyat, Naran and Kaghan areas. It also warned that the showers can cause landslides in the areas surrounding River Kabul.
Separately, over 20 people were killed last week in lightning strikes in Pakistan’s Punjab and southwestern Balochistan provinces amid heavy rains and thunderstorms in the two provinces.
Pakistan has been prone to natural disasters and consistently ranks among one of the most adversely affected countries due to the effects of climate change.
In March, heavy rains in Pakistan’s Balochistan triggered urban floods in Gwadar and Kech districts, destroying nearly 100 homes and killing at least five people.
In 2022, torrential monsoon rains triggered the most devastating floods in Pakistan’s history, killing around 1,700 people. Over 33 million people were affected by the floodwaters — a staggering number close to the population of Canada.
Millions of homes, tens of thousands of schools as well as thousands of kilometers of roads and railways still need to be rebuilt.