PESHAWAR, AUG 15: At least 146 people have died and dozens of others have been injured in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after a cloudburst and heavy rains triggered flash floods and landslides across the province, according to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) on Friday.
The dead include 126 men, eight women, and 12 children, the PDMA said, adding that 35 houses have been damaged, with 28 partially destroyed and seven completely demolished. In Buner alone, rescue officials said 120 bodies have been recovered so far, according to Rescue 1122.
Several homes were swept away in the devastation, while the officials said that communications in multiple areas have been severely disrupted. Mobile phone towers were damaged, cutting off contact with flood-hit regions.
A provincial government helicopter carrying relief supplies to Bajaur’s Salarzai area crashed due to bad weather while flying over Mohmand district, Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur’s spokesperson, Faraz Mughal Said, said, adding that five people died as a result.
Meanwhile, KP CM said: “All possible efforts are being made to re-establish contact. Another chopper, he said, is engaged in rescue operations in Buner.
Gandapur has directed that emergency teams be dispatched immediately to affected areas.
Electricity supply has been crippled in Swat after floodwaters entered the 132KV grid station, suspending power on 41 feeders, according to 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 also caused outages. PESCO has deployed additional staff on an emergency basis and established a control room to monitor the situation.
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Khan, whose party governs the province, said the death toll could rise in Buner. “Entire villages have been wiped out, roads are gone, and infrastructure is destroyed,” he said.
“Our focus is on search and rescue operations, but helicopters will be essential to reach several locations.”
Gohar confirmed a state of emergency has been declared in Buner, with hospitals placed on high alert. He urged both federal and provincial authorities to provide immediate assistance, stressing that “this is not a time for politics.”
KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi echoed that sentiment, 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 affected 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
Meanwhile, in Gilgit Baltistan, at least 10 people were killed as a result of landslides and flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains.
According to GB government spokesperson Faizullah Faraq, three people, including a woman, were killed in Khalthi valley of district Ghizer, where more than half a dozen houses were buried under debris. Three others remain missing, with rescue teams conducting search operations, according to The News.
In Diamer’s Bonar area, a brother and sister were swept away by raging floodwaters, while a child was injured in a landslide on the Babusar road.
Flash floods also ravaged Ghizer’s Yasin Thoi, damaging houses, schools, water tank, 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.
Meanwhile, in Kohistan, floods damaged a bridge on the Karakoram Highway, disrupting traffic between GB and the rest of the country.
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.
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.”
In AJK, flash floods and landslides have killed at least eight people and injured two others, according to the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA).
Six members of the same family were killed in a cloudburst in Naseerabad Tehsil of Muzaffarabad, said SDMA.
Heavy rains in the Bagh district caused rivers to overflow, and high levels of flooding occurred in the Bhimbar drain in Samahni, which swept away a tourist vehicle. However, all the people were rescued.
There was also an extraordinary increase in water flow in Jhelum Valley, Samahni, Hattian Bala and Neelum Valley.
In Muzaffarabad and adjoining areas, more than 30 houses, shops and other properties have been either partially or completely destroyed. Authorities also reported that mobile phone services have been suspended in several upper mountainous regions due to damaged infrastructure.
AJK Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwar ul Haq chaired an emergency meeting of the SDMA on late Thursday and ordered the relocation of residents living along riverbanks to safer places.
During the meeting, the premier also approved financial assistance for rain-affected families and directed that housing be provided to those whose homes were destroyed.
The AJK premier also ordered the establishment of emergency checkpoints to monitor water resources.
The 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.
Meanwhile, AJK Information Minister Mazhar Saeed, in a video statement from the tourist spot of Ratti Gali in Neelum Valley, said over 700 tourists, including more than 300 women and children, were stranded after a cloudburst washed away sections of the road.
Due to bad weather, he noted, authorities have stopped tourists from leaving the area and arranged free accommodation with the help of local residents.
The recent monsoon season has wreaked havoc across Pakistan, causing widespread flooding and landslides that claimed over 300 lives nationwide.
Most of the deaths were caused by collapsing houses, flash floods and electrocutions.
