Flash floods triggered by heavy rains kill at least 49 people in northwestern Pakistan
More than 360 people, mostly women and children, have died in rain-related incidents across Pakistan since June 26. Most of the latest deaths were reported in northern and northwestern Pakistan, according to local officials.
At least 10 people were killed Thursday after being swept away by flash floods in Ghazar district in the Gilgit-Baltistan region, said regional government spokesman Faizullah Faraq.
Another 16 people, including women and children, also died Thursday in Bajaur district in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province when a massive cloudburst led to flash flooding, said rescue official Amjad Khan. He said 17 others were swept away and remain missing.
Flash floods also hit Battagram, a district in the northwest, killing 10 people, government administrator Saleem Khan said. He said another 18 people were still missing.
Seven more people died Thursday in separate rain-related incidents in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, which is split between Pakistan and India and claimed by both in its entirety, according to the state disaster management authority.
Bilal Faizi, a provincial emergency service spokesman in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said rescuers worked for hours to save 1,300 tourists after they were trapped by flash flooding and landslides in the Siran Valley in Mansehra district on Thursday.
Faraq said Gilgit-Baltistan has been hit by multiple floods since July, triggering landslides along the Karakoram Highway, a key trade and travel route linking Pakistan and China that is used by tourists to travel to the scenic north.
Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari in a statement expressed his sorrow and grief over the losses and asked authorities to expedite the rescue and relief work in the flood-affected areas.
Gilgit-Baltistan is also home to scenic glaciers that provide 75% of Pakistan's stored water supply. Pakistan's disaster management agency has issued fresh alerts for glacial lake outburst flooding in the north, warning travelers to avoid affected areas.
A study released this week by World Weather Attribution, a network of international scientists, found rainfall from June 24 to July 23 was 10% to 15% heavier because of global warming. Experts say sudden, intense downpours over small areas — known as cloudbursts — are becoming increasingly common in the country.
In 2022, the country's worst monsoon season on record killed more than 1,700 people and caused an estimated $40 billion in damage.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Heavy rains expected in Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands as Hurricane Erin nears
Heavy rains expected in Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands as Hurricane Erin nears SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Erin strengthened into a hurricane on Friday as it approached the northeast Caribbean, prompting forecasters to warn of possible flooding and landslides. The storm is expected to remain over open waters, although tropical storm watches were issued for Anguilla, Barbuda, St. Martin, St. Barts, Saba, St. Eustatius and St. Maarten. Heavy rains were forecast to start late Friday in Antigua and Barbuda, the U.S. and British Virgin Islands and southern and eastern Puerto Rico. Up to 4 inches (10 centimeters) are expected, with isolated totals of up to 6 inches (15 centimeters), according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. The hurricane center also warned of dangerous swells but said the threat of direct impacts in the Bahamas and along the east coast of the United States 'appears to be gradually decreasing.' The storm was located about 365 miles (585 kilometers) east of the Northern Leeward Islands. It had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 kph) and was moving west-northwest at 17 mph (28 kph). Hurricane specialist and storm surge expert Michael Lowry said Erin is forecast to eventually take a sharp turn northeast that would put it on a path between the U.S. and Bermuda. 'All of our best consensus aids show Erin turning safely east of the United States next week, but it'll be a much closer call for Bermuda, which could land on the stronger eastern side of Erin,' he said. Erin is the Atlantic season's first hurricane. It is forecast to become a major Category 3 storm late this weekend and pass some 200 miles (320 kilometers) north of Puerto Rico. The U.S. government has deployed more than 200 employees from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other agencies to Puerto Rico as a precaution as forecasters issued a flood watch for the entire U.S. territory from late Friday into Monday. Puerto Rico Housing Secretary Ciary Pérez Peña said 367 shelters have been inspected and could be opened if needed. Meanwhile, officials in the Bahamas said they prepared some public shelters as a precaution as they urged people to track the hurricane. 'These storms are very volatile and can make sudden shifts in movement,' said Aarone Sargent, managing director for the Bahamas' disaster risk management authority. Dangerous surf and rip currents are expected to affect the U.S. East Coast next week, with waves reaching up to 15 feet (5 meters) along parts of the North Carolina coast that could cause beach erosion, according to Accuweather. 'Erin is forecast to explode into a powerful Category 4 hurricane as it moves across very warm waters in the open Atlantic. Water temperatures at the surface and hundreds of feet deep are several degrees higher than the historical average,' said Alex DaSilva, Accuweather's lead hurricane expert. Erin is the fifth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. This year's season is once again expected to be unusually busy. The forecast calls for six to 10 hurricanes, with three to five reaching major status with winds of more than 110 mph (177 kph). Dánica Coto, The Associated Press
San Francisco Chronicle
8 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Air Canada could shut down completely unless the airline and its flight attendants reach a deal
TORONTO (AP) — A complete shutdown of Air Canada is looming if the union representing the flight attendants of the country's dominant air carrier and the airline fail to reach an agreement by early Saturday. More than 10,000 flight attendants are poised to walk off the job around 1 a.m. EST on Saturday, followed by a company-imposed lockout. It threatens to impact about 130,000 travelers a day. The Canadian carrier said it expects to call off 500 flights by the end of Friday ahead of the deadline. It already started canceling flights on Thursday in expectation of the massive work stoppage that could impact hundreds of thousands of travelers. A full grounding could affect some 25,000 Canadians a day abroad who may become stranded. "We strongly urge the parties to work with federal mediators and get a deal done. Time is precious and Canadians are counting on you," Federal Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu said in a statement Friday. By midday Friday, Air Canada had called off 87 domestic flights and 176 international flights that were scheduled to depart on Friday and Saturday, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium. On Thursday, when the airline said it was beginning it's 'phased wind down' of most operations, 18 domestic flights and four international flights were canceled. Canadian Union of Public Employees, or CUPE, which represents the flight attendants, refused to voluntarily submit to arbitration. 'The appropriate course of action is for Air Canada to return to the table and resume good faith bargaining,' it said in a statement. The union, which represents about 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants, and the airline say disagreements over key issues, including pay raises, have brought contract talks to a standstill. How long the planes will be grounded remains to be seen. Air Canada Chief Operating Officer Mark Nasr said the decision to lock out the union members even if it meant halting flights would help facilitate an orderly restart, 'which under the best circumstances will take a full week to complete.' Air Canada and CUPE have been in contract talks for about eight months, but they have yet to reach a tentative deal. The union put it to a vote at the end of July and 99.7% approved a strike. On Wednesday, it gave Air Canada a 72-hour strike notice. The airline responded with a so-called lockout notice, saying it would prevent the flight attendants from working on Saturday. The union said it rejected a proposal from the airline to enter a binding arbitration process that would have prevented flight attendants from walking off the job, saying it prefers to negotiate a deal that its members can then vote on.
Associated Press
9 hours ago
- Associated Press
Photos of mourners and searches for the missing from flash floods in Pakistan and India
Communities in mountainous areas of India and Pakistan are mourning the loss of hundreds of lives due to recent flash floods, with many families holding funerals as the search for those still missing continues. This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
