ISLAMABAD, AUG 15: At least 194 people have died and dozens more have been injured in Pakistan’s northern areas after cloudbursts and heavy rains triggered flash floods and landslides, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said on Friday.
The dead include 180 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), five in Gilgit Baltistan (GB), and nine in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), with deaths expected to rise as the situation remains volatile.
The NDMA confirmed that 158 of the victims were male, 19 female, and 17 children. Another 28 people have been injured nationwide, while 116 houses have been damaged — 34 partially and 14 fully in KP, 14 partially and three fully in GB, and 23 partially and 28 fully in AJK.
People being shifted to safe places in police trucks after flooding in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Buner, on August 15, 2025. — X@GovernmentKP
People being shifted to safe places in police trucks after flooding in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Buner, on August 15, 2025. — X@GovernmentKP
People stranded as floods wipe away roads in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on August 15, 2025. — Geo News
People stranded as floods wipe away roads in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on August 15, 2025. — Geo News
District administration clears roads after landsliding in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Shangla District, on August 15, 2025. — X@GovernmentKP
District administration clears roads after landsliding in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Shangla District, on August 15, 2025. — X@GovernmentKP
Pakistan Army personnel rescue children after flooding in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on August 15, 2025. — Geo News
Pakistan Army personnel rescue children after flooding in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on August 15, 2025. — Geo News
Rescue officials shift tourists to a safe place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Siran, on August 15, 2025. — X@GovernmentKP
Rescue officials shift tourists to a safe place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Siran, on August 15, 2025. — X@GovernmentKP
Rescue officials shift tourists to a safe place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Siran, on August 15, 2025. — X@GovernmentKP
Rescue officials shift tourists to a safe place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Siran, on August 15, 2025. — X@GovernmentKP
Police and rescue personnel watch on as floods cause devastation in KP, on August 15, 2025. — Geo News
Police and rescue personnel watch on as floods cause devastation in KP, on August 15, 2025. — Geo News
Apart from several homes being swept away in the devastation, communications in multiple areas have been cut off. Officials reported that mobile phone towers were damaged, leaving flood-hit regions isolated.
A KP government helicopter carrying relief supplies to Bajaur’s Salarzai area crashed due to bad weather while flying over Mohmand district, killing five people on board, KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur’s spokesperson, Faraz Mughal, said. Another helicopter is engaged in rescue operations in Buner.
KP CM Gandapur directed that emergency teams be dispatched immediately to affected areas. He announced that a day of mourning will be observed tomorrow.
“The national flag will fly at half-mast across the province, and the martyrs will be laid to rest with full state honours,” the statement from his office said.
In response, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has instructed the NDMA to conduct comprehensive relief operations in flood-affected areas of AJK and KP.
Electricity supply in Swat has been crippled after floodwaters entered the 132KV grid station, suspending power on 41 feeders, according to the Peshawar Electricity Supply Company (PESCO).
Sixteen poles supplying Malam Jabba were washed away, while numerous other poles and transformers were damaged across the district.
Fallen trees on transmission lines have worsened outages. PESCO has deployed extra staff on an emergency basis and set up a control room to monitor the situation.
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Khan, whose party governs KP, warned that the death toll could rise in Buner. “Entire villages have been wiped out, roads are gone, and infrastructure is destroyed,” he said.
A state of emergency has been declared in Buner, with hospitals on high alert. “Our focus is on search and rescue operations, but helicopters will be essential to reach several locations,” he added, stressing that “this is not a time for politics.”
Mourners and locals offer funeral prayers for victims who died in incidents related to flash floods and monsoon rains in Salarzai Tehsil of Bajaur district on August 15, 2025. — AFP
Mourners and locals offer funeral prayers for victims who died in incidents related to flash floods and monsoon rains in Salarzai Tehsil of Bajaur district on August 15, 2025. — AFP
KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi urged unity, saying: “We must work together to save lives.”
He confirmed that mobile towers and other communications infrastructure had been damaged by floods and landslides, further isolating communities.
“The federal government stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the province,” he added.
The Pakistan Army’s flood relief operation is under way, with efforts focused on flood-hit districts of Swat and Bajaur.
Army teams are moving residents from affected areas to safe locations, while in Bajaur, people are being rescued by helicopter. Food supplies and medicines are also being delivered to the affected areas by air.
Destruction in GB, AJK
In AJK’s Neelum Valley, floodwaters washed away six suspension bridges, while in Muzaffarabad, a cloudburst killed eight people, including six members of the same family.
Landslides and flood damage have blocked multiple sections of the Kohala and Neelum highways, cutting off road access to parts of the valley. Tourists remain stranded at the Ratti Gali base camp after the road was swept away in several places.
The AJK government also announced the closure of public and private schools on August 15 and 16 owing to continued heavy rains and the risk of landslides.
In GB, flash floods have destroyed crops, orchards, homes, bridges, and water channels. Flash floods also ravaged Ghizer’s Yasin Thoi, damaging houses, schools, water tanks, and agricultural land.
Landslides disrupted travel on the Baltistan and Sadpara roads, while Thor in Diamer reported severe destruction. The Astore valley wasn’t spared either. Floods also damaged agricultural land and roads in the area.
The Karakoram Highway remains blocked, severing land links between Gilgit and Rawalpindi. Several valleys in Diamer and Skardu have been cut off, with power stations shut down after the Sadpara Dam’s water channel was swept away.
Onlookers gather near a destroyed bridge after flash floods on the outskirts of Muzaffarabad, the capital AJK, on August 15, 2025. — AFP
Onlookers gather near a destroyed bridge after flash floods on the outskirts of Muzaffarabad, the capital AJK, on August 15, 2025. — AFP
GB government spokesperson Faizullah Faraq said that relief and search operations are underway despite challenging weather conditions.
“This is a testing time for Gilgit-Baltistan,” said Faraq. “The government is mobilising all available resources to assist the affected communities.”
The GB government has imposed emergency measures in several areas, directing the GB Disaster Management Authority (GBDMA) and Rescue 1122 to remain on high alert.
Across the Line of Control, in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district, a cloudburst and subsequent flash flooding killed at least 56 people, with more than 100 reported missing.
Officials fear the toll could rise. A large number of Hindu pilgrims were present in the affected area when the disaster struck.
PM orders comprehensive flood relief operations
Prime Minister Shehbaz has directed the NDMA to ensure the immediate delivery of tents, medicines, food supplies, and other essential relief items to KP.
Chairing an emergency meeting in Islamabad to assess the flood situation caused by recent heavy rains across the country, he instructed the dispatching of relief goods urgently via trucks on a priority basis.
NDMA Chairman Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik briefed the prime minister on the damage caused by cloudbursts and flash floods in the northern regions, as well as ongoing rescue and relief operations.
The PM directed NDMA to continue close coordination with the KP government and the Provincial Disaster Management Authority, and to extend full support in rescue and relief efforts by mobilizing all available resources.
He instructed the NDMA chairman to further strengthen communication with the provincial government to ensure effective rescue and relief operations. The prime minister also advised that stranded individuals and tourists in flood-affected areas be promptly relocated to safe locations.
The prime minister was briefed on the extent of damage and the progress of ongoing rescue and relief efforts.
Besides, PM Shehbaz held telephone conversations with KP Governor Kundi and CM Gandapur. He expressed deep sorrow over the loss of precious lives due to cloudbursts and flash floods in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
He assured the chief minister that the federal government would extend full support to the provincial administration.
The prime minister said the federal government is dispatching medicines, tents, and food supplies to the affected areas. He said in this hour of hardship, our heartfelt sympathies are with the affected people.
Governor Kundi also received a call from Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, who expressed his condolences over the large-scale human and material losses in the province due to the cloudburst.
The Sindh CM offered every possible assistance from the Sindh government to help the affected areas, assuring that the government and people of Sindh stood firmly with the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
“The Sindh government is fully prepared to extend all forms of support to the flood-affected communities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” Shah told Governor Kundi.
Prolonged monsoon
The monsoon season brings South Asia about three-quarters of its annual rainfall, vital for agriculture and food security, but it also brings destruction.
Landslides and flash floods are common during the season, which usually begins in June and eases by the end of September.
Syed Muhammad Tayyab Shah, a representative of the national disaster agency, told AFP that this year’s monsoon season began earlier than usual and is expected to end later.
“The next 15 days… the intensity of the monsoon will further exacerbate,” he said.
Scientists say that climate change has made weather events around the world more extreme and more frequent.
Pakistan is one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change, and its population is contending with extreme weather events with increasing frequency.
The torrential rains that have pounded Pakistan since the start of the summer monsoon, described as “unusual” by authorities, have killed more than 500 people, including 159 children.
In July, Punjab, home to nearly half of Pakistan’s 255 million people, recorded 73% more rainfall than the previous year and more deaths than in the entire previous monsoon.
Monsoon floods in 2022 submerged a third of the country and killed around 1,700 people.
