Khyber Pakhtunkhwa [Pakistan], August 6 : At least 71 people, over half of them children, have died and another 86 have been injured in rain-related incidents across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) since the start of the monsoon season in late June, Dawn reported, citing the KP Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA).
Monsoon rains, which fall across the region from June to September every year, continue to lash many parts of the country. Dawn reported that, since late June, the rains have wreaked havoc across KP, triggering deadly floods, landslides and displacement, particularly in vulnerable, poorly drained or densely populated areas.
According to the latest PDMA data, the total death toll from rain-related incidents this monsoon season stands at 71, including 40 children, 17 men and 14 women, Dawn reported. Swat district recorded the highest number of deaths, at 22, during heavy rains, with most fatalities caused by floods, landslides and infrastructure collapse.
On June 27, 17 people, mostly tourists, went missing after unprecedented flash floods struck areas of Swat and Malakand divisions. Dawn reported that 12 bodies were recovered, four people were rescued, and the body of one person remains missing, according to PDMA. The delay in rescue efforts sparked outrage across the country.
The PDMA report stated that on July 21, a woman died after drowning in a nullah, while two children were swept away and reported dead. The same day, three children died after the roof of their house collapsed in the Bahrain tehsil of Swat.
District-wise, the death toll currently stands at: Swat (22), Buner (4), Malakand (5), Charsadda (3), Upper Dir (3), Torghar (2), Mansehra (3), Hangu (2), Khyber (3), Abbottabad (5), Shangla (2), Bajaur (3), Lower Kohistan (2), Lakki Marwat (3), Battagram (2). Karak, Haripur, Upper Kohistan, Nowshera and Kohat recorded one death each, Dawn reported.
The PDMA also estimated that 86 people have been injured in rain-related incidents, including 38 men, 15 women and 33 children. A total of 358 houses have been damaged, 54 of them completely destroyed. Swat recorded the highest number of destroyed houses at 63, followed by 38 in Karak and 22 in Buner. The number of cattle that perished as a result of the rains stood at 142.
Meanwhile, PDMA has issued a rainfall alert for KP, forecasting isolated rainfall and thunderstorms over the next 12 to 24 hours in several parts of the province, including Chitral, Dir, Swat, Kalam, Mansehra, Battagram, Abbottabad, Haripur, Swabi, Mardan, Nowshera, Peshawar, Charsadda, Kohat, Lakki Marwat, Parachinar, Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan.
In a statement issued on Sunday, PDMA directed district administrations and other relevant organisations to remain on high alert as the Pakistan Meteorological Department forecast more intermittent to heavy rains, wind, and thunderstorms across KP from August 4 to 7, Dawn reported.