PESHAWAR: Torrential rains and flash floods continued wreaking havoc across country, with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and FATA hard hit, as more incidents of house collapses and rain-related casualties were reported on Sunday taking death toll to around 49 in KP, Punjab and Balochistan with scores injured in three days of calamity.
Dozens of houses collapsed in different areas of FATA and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Women and children are among the dead and injured. The routine life in the region has been badly disrupted owing to continued downpour and thousands stand effected.
The major and the most tragic incident took place on Saturday evening when two mines caved in leaving eight people dead and over two dozen injured in Dolay area of Orakzai agency. Majority of the victims belonged to Shangla district.
In Khyber Agency, Mohmand, Bajaur and FR areas at least eight people were reported killed and several injured in the rain-related incidents. The officials of the FATA Disaster Management Authority say that most casualties occurred due to house collapses in different areas.
There are also reports of large scale destruction due to torrential rains in various settled areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority sources said that in Mardan, Bannu divisions and districts of Karak and Tank four people were killed and dozens wounded as several houses collapsed.
In Malakand division too, as many as three people were reported dead and 15 others injured due to rains that resulted in the collapse of scores of houses.
The PDMA said the detailed assessment is being made about the losses of lives and property claiming the departments and various agencies attached with the disaster management and rescue operations are geared up to meet the emergency situation.
The downpour was badly disrupting the relief activities. A number of Army teams are engaged in relief and rescue work in various parts. The Met office has predicted more rains in days to come.
Agencies add: Death toll from torrential rains rose to 45 on Sunday after more homes collapsed in various parts of the country. “At least 17 people died due to roofs and walls collapsing or being struck by lightning,” Zahid Saleem, chief of Balochistan’s disaster management authority, told media.
Three persons including two children were killed in Gujar Khan on Sunday when a roof of the house caved in Bhangali area. Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has expressed grief and sorrow over the loss of precious lives.
Officials in the Punjab said they were still estimating damages caused by rains in the province.
Severe weather hits the country every year, with hundreds killed and huge tracts of prime farmland was destroyed in recent years.
During the rainy season last summer, torrential downpours and flooding killed 81 people and affected almost 300,000 across the country.
