Monsoon Floods Wreak Havoc in Pakistan
- 14 years ago
Thunderstorms and flash floods have killed nearly 80 people and left several thousands stranded in villages in Pakistan’s northwest.
Most of the casualties were in the Swat valley, where torrential rains caused the Swat River to burst its bank.
Floodwaters have destroyed several schools, bridges, hotels and houses.
[Naveed Khan, Swat Valley Resident]:
“Rains and floods have wreaked havoc here. The entire Hayatabad region has been submerged. Water has entered houses.”
Other residents say they’re getting no assistance from the authorities.
[Ibrar Ahmed, Local Resident]:
"There has been huge destruction in Swat but the government and the local administration are doing nothing about it. Houses have collapsed and people are fleeing the area."
28 people have been killed in the past 24 hours by flooding across Swat, while another 21 were killed by lightening and house collapses in the town of Shangla on Thursday.
About a dozen people were killed in Swat's neighboring district of Lower Dir, where swirling floodwaters swamped dozens of houses and caused extensive damage to infrastructure.
Heavy rains also triggered flash floods in other parts of the province, including the provincial capital Peshawar. And officials confirmed at least 17 dead in flood-related incidents in the past 24 hours.
Several thousand people in Swat and other parts of the province were either stranded or forced from their homes as continuous rains were disrupting relief efforts.
Troops evacuated about 300 people from a village encircled by floodwaters in the district of Tank.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province received an average of 10 to 12 inches of rain in the past 36 hours, the most in the last 35 years.
Pakistan's meteorological department is expecting more rains in the next 24 hours.
Most of the casualties were in the Swat valley, where torrential rains caused the Swat River to burst its bank.
Floodwaters have destroyed several schools, bridges, hotels and houses.
[Naveed Khan, Swat Valley Resident]:
“Rains and floods have wreaked havoc here. The entire Hayatabad region has been submerged. Water has entered houses.”
Other residents say they’re getting no assistance from the authorities.
[Ibrar Ahmed, Local Resident]:
"There has been huge destruction in Swat but the government and the local administration are doing nothing about it. Houses have collapsed and people are fleeing the area."
28 people have been killed in the past 24 hours by flooding across Swat, while another 21 were killed by lightening and house collapses in the town of Shangla on Thursday.
About a dozen people were killed in Swat's neighboring district of Lower Dir, where swirling floodwaters swamped dozens of houses and caused extensive damage to infrastructure.
Heavy rains also triggered flash floods in other parts of the province, including the provincial capital Peshawar. And officials confirmed at least 17 dead in flood-related incidents in the past 24 hours.
Several thousand people in Swat and other parts of the province were either stranded or forced from their homes as continuous rains were disrupting relief efforts.
Troops evacuated about 300 people from a village encircled by floodwaters in the district of Tank.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province received an average of 10 to 12 inches of rain in the past 36 hours, the most in the last 35 years.
Pakistan's meteorological department is expecting more rains in the next 24 hours.