Flash floods kill 57 in northwest Pakistan, PoK

At least 57 people were killed and 27 others injured as flash floods triggered by torrential rains swept away houses across northwest Pakistan and PoK, officials said on Monday.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province was worst-hit in the downpour that began on Sunday night and caused flash floods in several districts, a Pakistani national disaster management official said.

Shangla district was most affected where 14 people were killed while 12 people died in Kohistan and eight in Swat, the official said.

At least eight people, including five children, were killed in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Gilgit Baltistan regions where land slides buried houses.

Several houses were badly damaged and some bridges were swept away by flash floods in different parts of the province.

The rain also caused losses to orchards and other standing crops. There were reports that land sliding has damaged Karakorum Highway between Gilgit and Chilas, blocking the vital land link with China.

All the educational institutions have been ordered to close down in the rain-hit areas.

President Mamnoon Hussain has expressed grief over the loss of lives and property in the torrential rains and directed the authorities concerned to take all measures to help the affected people.

Over 70 shops near the provincial capital of Peshawar were washed away due to flooding in the city’s Bara river, while several others were partially damaged.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Sunday expressed sorrow over the loss of lives in the accidents and directed the National Disaster Management Authority and other concerned authorities to ensure timely relief activities for the victims, including provision of proper medical care, food and shelter for the affected, a press release from the PM Office said.

Local met office said widespread rain-thundershower, accompanied by strong gusty winds with isolated heavy falls, were likely to persist in the western and upper parts of the country for the next 24  hours.