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Toronto Sun
19 hours ago
- Climate
- Toronto Sun
Hopes for survivors wane as landslides, flooding bury Pakistan villages
Published Aug 17, 2025 • 3 minute read People gather near a damaged vehicle and debris after flash flooding wiped out a road in monsoon-hit northern Pakistan Photo by Mehboob UL HAQ / AFP Peshawar (Pakistan) (AFP) — Thousands of Pakistani rescuers battled rain and knee-deep mud Sunday, digging homes out from under massive boulders in a desperate search for survivors after flash floods killed at least 344 people in the country's mountainous north. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Most of the deaths were reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where monsoon rains that are only expected to intensify in the days ahead drove flooding and landslides that collapsed houses. In hardest-hit Bunar district, at least 208 people were killed and '10 to 12 entire villages' partially buried, a provincial rescue spokesman told AFP. 'The operation to rescue people trapped under debris is ongoing,' said Bilal Ahmed Faizi of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's rescue agency. 'There is still concern that dozens of people may be trapped under the rubble… the chances of those buried under the debris surviving are very slim'. He said that around 2,000 rescue workers were engaged in recovering bodies from the debris and carrying out relief operations across nine districts, where rain was still hampering efforts. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains across northern Pakistan have killed at least 344 people. (Sajjad QAYYUM/AFP) Photo by Sajjad QAYYUM / AFP AFP journalists in Buner saw half-buried vehicles and belongings lying strewn in the sludge, with mud covering houses and shops. Flooded roads hampered the movement of rescue vehicles, as a few villagers worked to cut fallen trees to clear the way after the water receded. 'Our belongings are scattered, ruined and are in bad shape,' local shopkeeper Noor Muhammad told AFP as he used a shovel to remove mud. 'The shops have been destroyed along with everything else. Even the little money people had has been washed away,' he added. The provincial government has declared the severely affected mountainous districts of Buner, Bajaur, Swat, Shangla, Mansehra and Battagram as disaster-hit areas. 'This disaster has spread everywhere and surrounded us from all sides. We were trapped in our homes and could not get out, another Buner resident, Syed Wahab Bacha, told AFP. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Our entire poor community has been affected. The shops in the lower bazaar have been destroyed. This road was our only path, and it too has been washed away,' he added. Mass funerals A resident removes sludge from his damaged house a day after flash floods in Buner district, located in Pakistan's mountainous Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. (Hasham AHMED/AFP) Photo by Hasham AHMED / AFP On Saturday, hundreds of locals gathered for mass funerals, where bodies wrapped in blood-stained white shawls were laid out on the village ground. Fallen trees and straw debris were scattered across nearby fields, while residents shoveled mud brought in by the floods out of their homes. Pakistan's meteorological department has forecast that 'torrential rains' with monsoon activity were 'likely to intensify' from Sunday onwards. The department warned of more flash floods and landslides in the country's northwest and urged people to avoid exposure to vulnerable areas. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The monsoon season brings South Asia about three-quarters of its annual rainfall, vital for agriculture and food security, but also brings destruction. Landslides and flash floods are common during the season, which usually begins in June and eases by the end of September. The national disaster agency's Syed Muhammad Tayyab Shah told AFP that this year's monsoon season began earlier than usual and was expected to end later. The torrential rains that have pounded Pakistan since the start of the summer monsoon, described as 'unusual' by authorities, have killed at least 650 people, with more than 910 injured. Pakistan is one of the world's most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change and is contending with extreme weather events with increasing frequency. Monsoon floods in 2022 submerged a third of the country and killed around 1,700 people. Another villager in Buner told AFP on Saturday that residents had spent the night searching through the rubble of their former homes. 'The entire area is reeling from profound trauma,' said 32-year-old schoolteacher Saifullah Khan. 'I helped retrieve the bodies of the children I taught. I keep wondering what kind of trial nature has imposed on these kids,' he said. Columnists Sunshine Girls Sunshine Girls CFL Toronto & GTA
IOL News
2 days ago
- Climate
- IOL News
Flash floods in Pakistan claim over 300 lives amid heavy monsoon rains
Mourners carry the coffins of flood affected victims after flash floods in Naryean Behaak village some 36 kilometers north from Muzaffarabad. Image: Sajjad Qayyum / AFP Rescuers were struggling to retrieve bodies from debris after flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains across northern Pakistan killed at least 321 people in the past 48 hours, authorities said on Saturday. The majority of deaths, 307, were reported in mountainous Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority said. Most were killed in flash floods and collapsing houses, with the dead including 15 women and 13 children. At least 23 others were injured. The provincial rescue agency told AFP that around 2,000 rescue workers were engaged in recovering bodies from the debris and carrying out relief operations in nine affected districts where rain was still hampering efforts. People walk past scattered debris as floodwater flows near a damaged market following a flash flood in Mingora, the main city of Swat Valley. Image: Mehboob UL HAQ / AFP Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ "Heavy rainfall, landslides in several areas, and washed-out roads are causing significant challenges in delivering aid, particularly in transporting heavy machinery and ambulances," Bilal Ahmed Faizi, spokesman for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's rescue agency, told AFP. "Due to road closures in most areas, rescue workers are travelling on foot to conduct operations in remote regions," he added. "They are trying to evacuate survivors, but very few people are relocating due to the deaths of their relatives or loved ones being trapped in the debris." The provincial government has declared the severely affected mountainous districts of Buner, Bajaur, Swat, Shangla, Mansehra and Battagram as disaster-hit areas. The meteorological department has issued a heavy rain alert for Pakistan's northwest for the next few hours, urging people to take "precautionary measures". Nine more people were killed in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, while five died in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region, the national disaster authority said. Another five people, including two pilots, were killed when a local government helicopter crashed due to bad weather during a relief mission on Friday. 'Doomsday' monsoon The monsoon season brings South Asia about three-quarters of its annual rainfall, vital for agriculture and food security, but it also brings destruction. Landslides and flash floods are common during the season, which usually begins in June and eases by the end of September. Syed Muhammad Tayyab Shah, a representative of the national disaster agency, told AFP that this year's monsoon season began earlier than usual and was expected to end later. "The next 15 days... the intensity of the monsoon will further exacerbate," he said. One resident likened the disaster to "doomsday". "I heard a loud noise as if the mountain was sliding. I rushed outside and saw the entire area shaking, like it was the end of the world," Azizullah, a resident of Buner district, where there have been dozens of deaths and injuries, told AFP. "I thought it was doomsday," he said. "The ground was trembling due to the force of the water, and it felt like death was staring me in the face." In Bajaur, a tribal district abutting Afghanistan, a crowd gathered around an excavator digging through a mud-soaked hill. On Friday, funeral prayers began in a paddock nearby, with people grieving in front of several bodies covered by blankets. The torrential rains that have pounded Pakistan since the start of the summer monsoon, described as "unusual" by authorities, have killed more than 600 people. In July, Punjab, home to nearly half of Pakistan's 255 million people, recorded 73 percent more rainfall than the previous year and more deaths than in the entire previous monsoon. Pakistan is one of the world's most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change, and its population is contending with extreme weather events with increasing frequency. Monsoon floods in 2022 submerged a third of the country and killed around 1,700 people. Another villager in Buner told AFP locals kept on searching through the rubble throughout the night. "The entire area is reeling from profound trauma," 32-year-old local schoolteacher Saifullah Khan told AFP. "We still have no clear idea who in this small village is alive and who is dead," he added. "I help retrieve the bodies of the children I taught, I keep wondering what kind of trial nature has imposed on these kids."
eNCA
2 days ago
- Climate
- eNCA
Pakistan rescuers recover bodies after monsoon rains kill 320
ISLAMABAD - Rescuers were struggling to retrieve bodies from debris after flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains across northern Pakistan killed at least 321 people in the past 48 hours, authorities said on Saturday. The majority of deaths, 307, were reported in mountainous Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority said. Most were killed in flash floods and collapsing houses, with the dead including 15 women and 13 children. At least 23 others were injured. The provincial rescue agency told AFP that around 2,000 rescue workers were engaged in recovering bodies from the debris and carrying out relief operations in nine affected districts where rain was still hampering efforts. "Heavy rainfall, landslides in several areas, and washed-out roads are causing significant challenges in delivering aid, particularly in transporting heavy machinery and ambulances," Bilal Ahmed Faizi, spokesman for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's rescue agency, told AFP. "Due to road closures in most areas, rescue workers are travelling on foot to conduct operations in remote regions," he added. "They are trying to evacuate survivors, but very few people are relocating due to the deaths of their relatives or loved ones being trapped in the debris." AFP | Mehboob UL HAQ The provincial government has declared the severely affected mountainous districts of Buner, Bajaur, Swat, Shangla, Mansehra and Battagram as disaster-hit areas. The meteorological department has issued a heavy rain alert for Pakistan's northwest for the next few hours, urging people to take "precautionary measures". Nine more people were killed in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, while five died in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region, the national disaster authority said. Another five people, including two pilots, were killed when a local government helicopter crashed due to bad weather during a relief mission on Friday. 'Doomsday' monsoon The monsoon season brings South Asia about three-quarters of its annual rainfall, vital for agriculture and food security, but it also brings destruction. Landslides and flash floods are common during the season, which usually begins in June and eases by the end of September. Syed Muhammad Tayyab Shah, a representative of the national disaster agency, told AFP that this year's monsoon season began earlier than usual and was expected to end later. "The next 15 days... the intensity of the monsoon will further exacerbate," he said. One resident likened the disaster to "doomsday". AFP | Sajjad QAYYUM "I heard a loud noise as if the mountain was sliding. I rushed outside and saw the entire area shaking, like it was the end of the world," Azizullah, a resident of Buner district, where there have been dozens of deaths and injuries, told AFP. "I thought it was doomsday," he said. "The ground was trembling due to the force of the water, and it felt like death was staring me in the face." In Bajaur, a tribal district abutting Afghanistan, a crowd gathered around an excavator digging through a mud-soaked hill. On Friday, funeral prayers began in a paddock nearby, with people grieving in front of several bodies covered by blankets. The torrential rains that have pounded Pakistan since the start of the summer monsoon, described as "unusual" by authorities, have killed more than 600 people. In July, Punjab, home to nearly half of Pakistan's 255 million people, recorded 73 percent more rainfall than the previous year and more deaths than in the entire previous monsoon. Pakistan is one of the world's most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change, and its population is contending with extreme weather events with increasing frequency. Monsoon floods in 2022 submerged a third of the country and killed around 1,700 people. Another villager in Buner told AFP locals kept on searching through the rubble throughout the night. "The entire area is reeling from profound trauma," 32-year-old local schoolteacher Saifullah Khan told AFP. "We still have no clear idea who in this small village is alive and who is dead," he added. "I help retrieve the bodies of the children I taught, I keep wondering what kind of trial nature has imposed on these kids."
