At least 22 people, including 10 from a single family, were killed and several others injured in accidents caused by heavy rains across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Tuesday.
The province has been experiencing heavy rains for the past few days, which triggered landslides and flash floods in numerous areas.
In the Bazikhel area of Darra Adam Khel, Kohat, 10 family members died when rainwater inundated the basement of their home where they were sleeping early Tuesday. The victims included three women, three men, and four children. Rescue teams, who arrived to find the basement already filled with water, had to demolish the front wall to access the site and pump out the water, but no survivors were found. The victims were from the old Bazi Khel tribe of Darra Adam Khel.
Casualties were also reported from other parts of KP. According to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) and Dawn correspondents, two people each died in Mansehra, Lower Chitral, Bajaur, Charsadda, and Lower Dir, while one person died in Haripur and Hangu districts.
In Lower Chitral, two men were killed by floodwaters. In Khurzg village of Yarkhoon sub-valley, villagers rescued two minors who had drowned in a high flood stream. Flash floods in Golen Valley washed away around 16 homes, and in Mori Bala village, four houses and a mosque were destroyed. In Brep, Khuz, Dizg, and Khruzg villages of Upper Chitral, several houses were damaged, leaving 63 families homeless. The Reshun village also suffered from a flash flood and erosion due to the swollen river.
A 108-megawatt hydropower station on the Golen Gol stream was closed, causing power outages in Lower and Upper Chitral districts.
In Mansehra, a woman and her 14-year-old son were swept away in floodwaters. The search for their bodies was hampered by flooding. Mahandri bazaar, previously destroyed in the 2022 floods, and houses in Manor valley were also affected. Torrential rain in Lower Dir led to flooding in streams and the Panjkora River, with two minors killed in Bosta village due to a mudslide.
In Bajaur, a woman and her daughter died, and two children were injured when their house collapsed in Mamund tehsil. In Charsadda, two youths drowned in the Jindi river, and a man was killed when his house roof collapsed.
Heavy rains persisted in Swabi, Mardan, Lower South Waziristan, and Abbottabad districts, though no casualties were reported there.
Tourists Stranded in Kaghan
Thousands of tourists are stranded in Kaghan Valley after a bridge on the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad road was washed away. Hotels are providing free room service for stranded tourists, and entry into Kaghan Valley has been restricted. District Police Officer Shafiullah Khan Gandapur said tourists are being advised to leave via Chilas, Gilgit-Baltistan. Deputy Commissioner Adnan Khan Battani has urged the National Highway Authority and other departments to prioritize the bridge’s reconstruction.
Three Dead in Sindh
Several districts in Sindh experienced moderate to light rainfall, with three casualties reported. In Karachi, a 22-year-old and a 16-year-old were electrocuted in New Karachi and Jamshed Quarters, respectively. In Nawabshah, a man died in the hospital after being struck by lightning.
Disaster Preparedness
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has directed the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to take necessary measures to protect lives and property during the monsoon rains. He called for better coordination with provincial disaster management authorities and expedited restoration of affected highways and roads.
The NDMA convened a meeting of its National Disaster Response Committee (DRC) to assess provincial and departmental arrangements for handling the rainfall. Chaired by Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal and NDMA Chairman Lt Gen Inam Haider Malik, the meeting included briefings from the National Emergencies Operations Center and provincial disaster management authorities on ongoing rescue efforts.