Pakistan expands rescue efforts after floods kill more than 200 in one district
An emergency services spokesman in Buner, Mohammad Sohail, said more than half of the damaged roads in the district have been reopened, allowing vehicles and heavy machinery to reach isolated villages.
Crews are clearing piles of rocks and mud dumped by the floods. They were using heavy machinery on Sunday to remove the rubble of collapsed homes after families reported that some of their relatives were missing.
In one of the deadliest incidents, 24 people from one family died in the village of Qadar Nagar when floodwaters swept through their home on the eve of a wedding.
The head of the family, Umar Khan, said he survived the floods because he was out of the house at the time. Four of his relatives have yet to be found, he added.
Provincial chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur visited Buner on Saturday and announced that families of the dead will receive payments of two million rupees (£5,300) each.
He said tents, food, and clean drinking water are being provided to prevent outbreaks of waterborne diseases.
According to a government statement, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is monitoring the relief operations and has ordered faster distribution of aid, evacuation of stranded people, and intensified searches for the missing.
Pakistan's disaster management authority has warned of more deluges and possible landslides between August 17-19, urging local administrations to remain on alert.
Higher-than-normal monsoon rains have lashed the country since June 26 and killed more than 600.
Pakistan is highly vulnerable to climate-induced disasters. In 2022, a record-breaking monsoon killed nearly 1,700 people and destroyed millions of homes.
The country also suffers regular flash floods and landslides during the monsoon season, which runs from June to September, particularly in the rugged northwest, where villages are often perched on steep slopes and riverbanks.
Experts say climate change is intensifying the frequency and severity of such extreme weather events in South Asia.
In Indian-controlled Kashmir, torrential rains triggered flash floods in two villages in Kathua district that killed at least seven people and injured five overnight, officials said. Rescue and relief operations are under way.
In Kishtwar district, teams are continuing their efforts in the remote village of Chositi, looking for dozens of missing people after the area was hit by flash floods three days earlier.
At least 60 were killed and some 150 injured, about 50 in critical condition, in the disaster.
Thursday's floods struck during an annual Hindu pilgrimage. Authorities rescued over 300 people, while some 4,000 pilgrims were evacuated to safety.
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The Independent
5 hours ago
- The Independent
The science behind the deadly cloudbursts causing chaos in India and Pakistan
Deadly cloudbursts are wreaking havoc across mountainous regions of India and Pakistan, with intense, sudden deluges proving fatal in both nations. These extreme weather events involve tremendous rainfall over concentrated areas in short periods. In Pakistan, a single cloudburst in the northwestern district of Buner claimed the lives of as many as 300 people. The sheer force of the deluge triggered flash flooding, landslides, and mudflows, with boulders crashing down steep slopes to flatten homes and reduce entire villages to rubble. In one of the deadliest incidents, 24 people from one family died in the village of Qadar Nagar when floodwaters swept through their home on the eve of a wedding. The head of the family, Umar Khan, said he survived the floods because he was out of the house at the time. Four of his relatives have yet to be found, he added. 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Several factors contribute to a cloudburst, including warm, moist air rising upward, high humidity, low pressure, instability and convective cloud formation. Moist air is forced to rise after encountering a hill or mountain. This rising air cools and condenses. Clouds that are large, dense and capable of heavy rainfall form. Hills or mountains act like barriers and often trap these clouds, so they cannot disperse or move easily. Strong upward currents keep moisture suspended inside the clouds, delaying rainfall. When the clouds cannot hold the accumulated moisture anymore, they burst and release it all at once. Why do cloudbursts happen in India and Pakistan? Cloudbursts thrive in moisture, monsoons and mountains. Regions of India and Pakistan have all three, making them vulnerable to these extreme weather events. The Himalayas, Karakoram and Hindu Kush mountain ranges are home to the world's highest and most famous peaks, spanning multiple countries including India and Pakistan. The frequency of cloudbursts in these two South Asian nations has been steadily rising due to a warming atmosphere, because a warmer air mass can hold more moisture, creating conditions for sudden and intense downpours. The South Asian region has traditionally had two monsoon seasons. One typically lasts from June to September, with rains moving southwest to northeast. The other, from roughly October to December, moves in the opposite direction. But with more planet-warming gases in the air, the rain now only loosely follows this pattern. This is because the warmer air can hold more moisture from the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean, and that rain then tends to get dumped all at once. It means the monsoon is punctuated with intense flooding and dry spells, rather than sustained rain throughout. The combination of moisture, mountains and monsoons force these moisture-laden winds upward, triggering sudden condensation and cloudbursts. Can you predict cloudbursts? 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Glasgow Times
8 hours ago
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