At least 176 people lost their lives and several remained missing as flash floods wreaked havoc across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Friday, according to data from the Provincial Disaster Management Agency (PDMA).
Since late June, monsoon rains have wreaked havoc across the country — especially KP and northern regions — by triggering deadly floods, landslides and displacement, particularly in vulnerable, poorly drained, or densely populated areas.
The province-wide deaths included 150 men, 14 women and 12 children, with Buner witnessing the highest number of deaths, 78, according to the PDMA. The data added that 45 homes, three schools and eight other structures were destroyed amid the deluge, with 26 homes being destroyed in Swat alone.
Earlier, the KP government dispatched a helicopter with supplies to Bajaur district, but said that it lost contact with the aircraft. It later confirmed in a statement that the helicopter had crashed and five passengers were killed.
“As a result of this tragic accident, five passengers, including two pilots, were martyred,” the statement read, quoting KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.
“The provincial government has called for a day of mourning tomorrow and flags will be flown at half mast,” the statement added. “Rescue teams have been dispatched to the crash site and the martyrs will be buried with full honours.”
In an earlier statement, the CM was quoted as saying that contact with the helicopter had been lost due to “bad weather”.
According to the statement, a second government helicopter was carrying out relief operations in Buner district.
Buner Deputy Commissioner Kashif Qayum Khan told media.com that 78 people had lost their lives, while “several” were missing. A PDMA daily situation report seen by media.com confirmed the casualties, with 75 men, two women and a child among the deceased.
He told media.com that an emergency has been declared across the district as relief efforts continue in flood-affected areas.
“Helicopters are being used to carry out rescue operations in remote and inaccessible regions,” he said, adding that in Pir Baba Bazaar and the adjoining neighbourhood, floodwaters have completely submerged the area.
“A mosque in Gokand was destroyed and a large number of livestock perished,” he added. “Several roads remain blocked, and the exact number of missing persons has yet to be confirmed.”
Officials said the true figure would only be known once floodwaters receded.
Other most-impacted districts included Bajaur — located in the same Malakand Division as Buner — where eight children were among 21 killed and eight were injured due to flash floods, the PDMA report said.
Incidents related to lightning strikes took the lives of 15 men in Battagram, while 14 deaths and two injuries were reported in Mansehra due to floods.
In Swat, flash floods and thunder strikes claimed 11 lives, the PDMA report added. A roof collapse left five men dead and three wounded in Lower Dir, while two men were killed and as many were injured in a similar incident in Shangla.
The KP government said a provincial govt MI-17 rescue helicopter had reached Buner to evacuate people to safe areas.
Meanwhile, Muhammad Sohail, a media coordinator for Rescue 1122, told media.com that more than 157 bodies have so far been recovered, while over 100 people, including women and children, have been rescued and moved to safe locations.
“The situation is at its worst and rescue operations are continuing in the affected areas, as authorities work to reach stranded residents and provide relief,” he said.
Speaking to Geo News, KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi responded in the affirmative when asked whether an emergency should be declared. An official notification for that is yet to be issued.
PTI MNA Gohar Ali Khan, who is from Malakand Division’s Buner district, told Geo News: “We have sent rescue teams but reaching the points is also difficult.”
Buner District Police Officer (DPO) also told media.com in an earlier statement that 54 bodies were brought to a Tehsil Headquarters Hospital.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed the relevant authorities to accelerate the rescue operation in Battagram district. In a statement, he expressed grief over the deaths and prayed for those who lost their lives in the flash flood.
KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur spoke to the Hazara commissioner and Battagram DC on the phone and directed that the district administration officials reach the site to supervise the rescue operations, his government said.
Floods wreak havoc in Bajaur, Battagram, Mansehra
According to the Associated Press of Pakistan, Battagram Assistant Commissioner Muhammad Saleem Khan said the casualties occurred after five houses were destroyed last night due to a lightning strike in Neel Band village, which is located on the border of Battagram and Mansehra districts.
In Bajaur earlier today, there were “reports of several people injured in flash floods”, which were caused by a cloudburst (heavy rainfall) in Salarzai tehsil’s Jabrarai village“, Rescue 1122 spokesperson Bilal Ahmad Faizi told media.com.
“Rescue 1122 personnel, with the cooperation of residents, have so far recovered 16 bodies and rescued three injured from the rubble and rainwater,” Faizi confirmed, stating an earlier toll.
A search and rescue operation was underway under the supervision of Bajaur District Emergency Officer Amjad Khan as seven people remained missing, Faizi said, citing locals. DEO Amjad Khan and the station house in-charge were personally supervising the operation, the Rescue 1122 official added.
The deluge in Battagram affected villages located on the border areas of Neel Band, Sarim and Malkal Gali, according to a statement issued by Battagram Rescue 1122 spokesperson Aziz Khan.
“The ongoing rescue efforts are facing challenges due to intermittent rain and a near-total loss of mobile network coverage, severely impacting communication,” the statement explained.
In Lower Dir, five people died and four were wounded when the roof of a house in the Maidan area’s Suri Pao village collapsed due to heavy rain, Faizi said.
Detailing the hurdles, the rescue official said: “The rescue team reached the scene after walking for three hours despite heavy rain, flooded rails, difficult and bad roads.”
Yesterday, over a dozen people were killed as rains and flooding ripped through the country’s northern parts, including Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB).
In Muzaffarabad, a massive landslide in Sarli Sacha village hit a home, leaving six members of a family buried and feared dead. Torrential rains claimed the lives of two more women in AJK’s Bagh and Sudhnoti districts.
In GB, flash floods killed at least eight people, with two still missing in the Ghizer district, while also devastating villages in the Khalti, Ishkoman and Yasin areas.
Similarly, a spell of heavy downpour lashed various parts of Abbottabad district yesterday, triggering flash floods that severely disrupted traffic flow and caused damage to infrastructure.
At least 325 people, including 142 children, have died and 743 others have been injured since June 26 in flash floods and torrential rains that have battered several parts of Pakistan, according to daily data from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
More to follow
American Dollar Exchange Rate