Himachal Pradesh: Earthquake of magnitude 3.3 jolts Chamba
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News18
an hour ago
- News18
Pakistan Flash Floods Leave Over 700 Dead; Schools, Colleges Shut In Karachi
Last Updated: Pakistan floods: Flash floods have killed over 700 people and left hundreds missing since June 26, with more intense monsoon spells expected until September 10. Pakistan floods: Flash floods have ravaged parts of Pakistan, killing over 700 people and leaving hundreds missing since June 26, according to the country's National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Across Pakistan, 43 people were killed in the last 24 hours in rain-related incidents, taking the total deaths to 750 since the start of the monsoon in June last week, the authority said. In its latest update late Tuesday, the NDMA also warned of more intense monsoon spells across the country until September 10. The Sindh government ordered all private and public educational institutions across Karachi to remain shut on Wednesday after torrential monsoon rain left at least 10 people dead in the densely populated port city, news agency Reuters reported. The rains began in Karachi on Tuesday, causing widespread flooding as rainfall reached levels not seen in years in some parts of the southern city, which is Pakistan's financial capital and biggest city – home to more than 20 million people. Around 178 mm of rain was recorded in the northeast of Karachi, the highest since the weather station there was set up five years ago. Sharif, Munir, and several federal ministers visited the flood-affected districts of Swat, Buner, Shangla, and Swabi and received a comprehensive briefing on the ongoing rescue and relief operations in the region, news agency PTI reported. The Prime Minister emphasised that 'every available national resource will be mobilised to accelerate recovery efforts and restore normalcy in the affected areas." Sharif also distributed compensation cheques worth Rs 2 million to affected people. Buner and Swabi emerged as the worst-hit districts while Swat, Bajaur, Mansehra, Shangla, Lower Dir, Battagram and Swabi have also been badly affected due to persistent rains and floods across the province since last week. Flash floods triggered by cloudbursts in the mountainous northwest have brought destruction since Friday in the worst spell of this year's monsoon in the country. Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa was the worst hit, where 427 people have died so far, followed by 164 in Punjab, 29 in Sindh, 22 in Balochistan, 56 in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and eight in the Islamabad region, PTI reported. NDMA chief Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik said that more than 25,000 people have been rescued so far from flood-hit areas. Meanwhile, internet services were fully restored nationwide after a disruption caused by heavy rainfall, ARY News reported, citing Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) statement. Users across major cities, including Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, and Peshawar experienced connectivity issues, with Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) services facing major disruptions, as per ARY News. The internet disruption in Pakistan affected both online and call services, causing problems to individuals and businesses relying on digital platforms. view comments Location : Islamabad, Pakistan First Published: August 20, 2025, 23:18 IST News world Pakistan Flash Floods Leave Over 700 Dead; Schools, Colleges Shut In Karachi Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Loading comments...
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Landslide on Uttarkashi's Chungi Badethi tunnel, houses nearby under threat
Uttarkashi: Heavy rains triggered a massive landslide on an open tunnel, built at a cost of Rs 28 crore, in Chungi Badethi area of Uttarkashi district on Tuesday night. Debris fell on the tunnel's roof and the banks of the Bhagirathi river flowing below. With another mild landslide occurring in the area earlier in the day, houses in nearby hills are under threat. The open tunnel was constructed as part of protective work during the Char Dham road project in the landslide-prone zone and was opened in 2021. The Gangotri highway has been widened until the Chungi Badethi area, the entrance to Uttarkashi district headquarters. Locals are questioning the previous protective work done through rock bolt treatment in a radius of about 320m by spending crores of rupees, as landslides is frequent in the area. Shailendra Mathura, president of Uttarkashi hotel association, said there was pressure on the tunnel due to the landslide, despite the protective measures. The National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited had carried out repair work in and around the tunnel a couple of times over the past few years. Officials expressed confidence that the tunnel was safe. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area.
Economic Times
2 hours ago
- Economic Times
When mountains trap storms: The deadly mechanics of cloudbursts which have killed over 700 in Pakistan
Synopsis Pakistan is reeling from one of the deadliest monsoon seasons in recent memory, with more than 700 people killed since June. Flash floods triggered by cloudbursts have flattened homes, swept away farmland, and paralysed Karachi. Scientists link these disasters to rising temperatures and unstable weather patterns fuelled by climate change. From glacial melt in the Himalayas to torrential rains in Sindh, the human and economic toll is growing. Authorities warn more intense downpours could hit until mid-September. ANI Pakistan's Karachi reels under unprecedented monsoon rains; six killed, flights hit Pakistan's National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) reported that 706 people have died in rain-related incidents since 26 June. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remains the worst affected with 427 deaths, followed by Punjab with 164, Sindh with 29, Balochistan with 22, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir with 56, and eight in than 25,000 people have been rescued so far, NDMA chief Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik said. The agency has warned that heavy monsoon spells are likely to continue until 10 September. In Karachi, torrential rains over two days inundated major roads, broke drainage systems, and left large parts of the city without power and internet. At least eight people were killed in separate incidents, including electrocutions and house Murtaza Wahab declared a rain emergency and urged residents to remain indoors. 'It is expected to rain again from 2pm onwards. I would request people to avoid movement and if it starts to rain, please stay put where you are whether it is your office or residence,' he at Jinnah International Airport were delayed, cancelled, or diverted. Authorities deployed 26 de-watering pumps to clear standing water, while several bypasses and main roads were closed. Addressing a press conference, Wahab acknowledged the scale of the crisis. 'Climate change is a reality. If you want to make someone a target of criticism and say whatever you want, you can. But, you can see how huge a challenge climate change is for any government, state, or administration around the world.'The devastation has been worsened by cloudbursts, sudden downpours that unleash more than 100 millimetres of rain in an hour over a small area. These events are often described as 'rain bombs' because of their explosive nature.'Mountains create conducive conditions where the rapid updraft movement of air happens,' said Dr Sandeep Pattnaik, Associate Professor at the School of Earth, Ocean and Climate Sciences, IIT Bhubaneswar.'Because atmospheric instability is often caused by the mixing of different air masses, particularly over the northwestern Himalayan mountainous region, it leads to the rapid and large-scale accumulation of water vapour over certain locations.'He explained that when this water vapour builds up beyond a threshold, the clouds collapse. 'Once the excess accumulation of this water vapour and associated hydrometeors, called water loading, exceeds a certain threshold, the cloud is no longer able to hold that water, hence it releases large amounts of water over a short period.'As reported by Reuters, Fahad Saeed, a senior climate scientist at Berlin-based Climate Analytics, said that in the mountains of northern Pakistan, the warm monsoon system coming from the east was meeting colder air coming from the west, from the subtropical jet stream - a high-altitude weather system that originates in the warming is pushing this jet stream further south in summer, he said, where it can now combine with the lower-level clouds of the monsoon in Pakistan, forming a tower of clouds which then generatesg intense intense rainfall, though triggered by different local factors, takes place around the world, such as the floods in Texas in July, when more than 300 mm of rain fell in less than an hour, sending a wall of water down the Guadalupe Buner district, a single cloudburst claimed as many as 300 lives. Flash floods and landslides destroyed entire villages, while boulders crashing down steep slopes reduced homes to one case, 24 members of a family in Qadar Nagar died on the eve of a wedding when their house was swept away. Umar Khan, the head of the family, said he survived only because he was not home at the time. Four of his relatives are still India has faced similar disasters this season. Uttarakhand was struck by a cloudburst earlier this month, flooding the Himalayan village of Dharali. The event revived memories of the 2013 Uttarakhand floods, which killed more than 6,000 people and affected over 4,500 a cloudburst happens over flat land, the rainfall spreads over a wide area, so the impact is less severe, said Pradeep Dangol, a senior hydrology research associate at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, based in in steep mountain valleys, the rain is concentrated into narrow streams and slopes, with the potential to trigger flash floods and landslides, he Himalayas, Karakoram, and Hindu Kush mountain ranges combine with moist monsoon winds to create conditions ripe for cloudbursts. Scientists say these events are becoming more frequent as the atmosphere warms.'Whenever an event happens, it is a multidimensional issue. One thing is very sure, because the atmosphere gets warmer, erratic patterns develop. A rise in temperature leads to holding more water vapour, and it will lead to more rainfall,' Dr Pattnaik told India Khan, a former special secretary for climate change in Pakistan, warned: 'Rising global temperatures have supercharged the hydrologic cycle, leading to more intense and erratic rainfall. In our northern regions, warming accelerates glacier melt, adds excessive moisture to the atmosphere, and destabilises mountain slopes. In short, climate change is making rare events more frequent, and frequent events more destructive.'Cloudbursts remain almost impossible to forecast. Asfandyar Khan Khattak, an official from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, admitted: 'There was no forecasting system anywhere in the world that could predict the exact time and location of a cloudburst.'Even in areas with early warning systems, such as Buner district, the sudden intensity of the rainfall struck before alerts could be organisations in northern Pakistan advise residents to avoid building near rivers or valleys, to keep emergency kits ready, and to postpone travel in hilly regions during heavy rains. They also stress the importance of afforestation and widening riverbanks to absorb excess warming has already breached the 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold set in the Paris Agreement. The Himalayas could lose up to 80 per cent of their glaciers by the end of this century if current trends Pakistan Meteorological Department has forecast further heavy rainfall in Sindh, Balochistan, and parts of Punjab in the coming days, warning of possible urban flooding in Karachi, Thatta, Badin, Tharparkar, and rains continue and floodwaters rise, Pakistan's struggle underlines a larger truth. The monsoon is shifting, becoming less predictable and more destructive, and its impacts are falling hardest on those least prepared to withstand them.
