Latest news with #cloudbursts
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Cloudbursts are causing chaos in parts of India and Pakistan. Here's what they are
APTOPIX India Kashmir Flash Floods ISLAMABAD (AP) — Cloudbursts are causing chaos in mountainous parts of India and Pakistan, with tremendous amounts of rain falling in a short period of time over a concentrated area. The intense, sudden deluges have proved fatal in both countries. As many as 300 people died in one northwestern Pakistani district, Buner, after a cloudburst. The strength and volume of rain triggered flash flooding, landslides and mudflows. Boulders from steep slopes came crashing down with the water to flatten homes and reduce villages to rubble. The northern Indian state of Uttarakhand had a cloudburst earlier this month. Local TV showed floodwaters surging down a mountain and crashing into Dharali, a Himalayan village. In 2013, more than 6,000 people died and 4,500 villages were affected when a similar cloudburst struck the state. Here's what to know about cloudbursts: They are complex and extreme weather events A cloudburst occurs when a large volume of rain falls in a very short period, usually more than 100 millimeters (about 4 inches) within an hour over a localized area, around 30 square kilometers (11.6 square miles). Cloudbursts are sudden and violent, with devastating consequences and widespread destruction, and can be the equivalent of several hours of normal rainfall or longer. The event is the bursting of a cloud and the discharge of its contents at the same time, like a rain bomb. 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. India and Pakistan have ideal conditions 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. They are hard to predict, but precaution is possible It's difficult to predict cloudbursts because of their size, duration, suddenness and complex atmospheric mechanisms. Asfandyar Khan Khattak, a Pakistani official from the northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said there was 'no forecasting system anywhere in the world' that could predict the exact time and location of a cloudburst. The Pakistani government said that while an early warning system was in place in Buner district, where hundreds of people died after a cloudburst, the downpour was so sudden and intense that it struck before residents could be alerted. Community organization SOST, which is also the name of a border village in Pakistan's northern Gilgit-Baltistan region, says precautions are possible. It advises people to avoid building homes right next to rivers and valleys, to postpone any travel to hilly areas if heavy rain is forecast, to keep an emergency kit ready, and to avoid traveling on mountainous roads during heavy rain or at night. It recommends afforestation to reduce surface runoff and enhance water absorption, and regular clearing and widening of riverbanks and drainage channels. Climate change is fueling their frequency Experts say cloudbursts have increased in recent years, partly due to climate change, while damage from associated storms has also increased due to unplanned development in mountain areas. Climate change has directly amplified the triggers of cloudbursts in Pakistan, especially. Every 1°C rise allows the air to hold about 7% more moisture, increasing the potential for heavy rainfall in short bursts. The warming of the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea pushes more moisture into the atmosphere. Melting glaciers and snow alter local weather patterns, making rainfall events more erratic and extreme. Environmental degradation, in the form of deforestation and wetland loss, reduces the land's ability to absorb water, magnifying flash floods. Climate change has been a central driver in the destruction seen in Pakistan's northern areas. 'Rising global temperatures have supercharged the hydrologic cycle, leading to more intense and erratic rainfall,' said Khalid Khan, a former special secretary for climate change in Pakistan and chairman of climate initiative PlanetPulse. 'In our northern regions, warming accelerates glacier melt, adds excessive moisture to the atmosphere, and destabilizes mountain slopes. In short, climate change is making rare events more frequent, and frequent events more destructive." ___ Associated Press writers Munir Ahmed and Riaz Khan contributed to this report from Islamabad and Peshawar, Pakistan, respectively. Solve the daily Crossword
BreakingNews.ie
3 days ago
- Climate
- BreakingNews.ie
Flash floods triggered by torrential rains kill 176 in India and Pakistan
Flash floods triggered by torrential rains have killed at least 176 people and left scores of others missing in India and Pakistan over the past 24 hours, officials said, as rescuers brought to safety some 1,600 people from two mountainous districts in the neighbouring countries. Sudden, intense downpours over small areas known as cloudbursts are increasingly common in India's Himalayan regions and Pakistan's northern areas, which are prone to flash floods and landslides. Advertisement Cloudbursts have the potential to wreak havoc by causing intense flooding and landslides, impacting thousands of people in the mountainous regions. India's National Disaster Response Force and other security personnel carry out a rescue operation after flash floods in Chositi village, Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir (Channi Anand/AP) Experts say cloudbursts have increased in recent years partly because of climate change, while damage from the storms has also increased because of unplanned development in mountain regions. In India-controlled Kashmir, rescuers searched for missing people in the remote Himalayan village of Chositi on Friday after flash floods a day earlier left at least 60 people dead and at least 80 missing, officials said. Officials halted rescue operations overnight but rescued at least 300 people on Thursday after a powerful cloudburst triggered floods and landslides. Advertisement They said many missing people were believed to have been washed away. At least 50 seriously injured people were treated in local hospitals, many of them rescued from a stream filled with mud and debris. Disaster management official Mohammed Irshad said the number of missing people could increase. Weather officials forecast more heavy rains and floods in the area. Advertisement Chositi, in Kashmir's Kishtwar district, is the last village accessible to motor vehicles on the route of an ongoing annual Hindu pilgrimage to a mountainous shrine at an altitude of 3,000 metres (9,500ft). Stranded pilgrims are helped across a water channel using a makeshift bridge a day after flash floods in Chositi village, Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir (Channi Anand/AP) Officials said the pilgrimage, which began on July 25 and was scheduled to end on September 5, was suspended. The devastating floods swept away the main community kitchen set up for the pilgrims, as well as dozens of vehicles and motorbikes. More than 200 pilgrims were in the kitchen at the time of the flood, which also damaged or washed away many of the homes clustered together in the foothills, officials said. Advertisement Photos and videos on social media show extensive damage with household goods strewn next to damaged vehicles and homes in the village. Authorities made makeshift bridges on Friday to help stranded pilgrims cross a muddy water channel. Kishtwar district is home to multiple hydroelectric power projects, which experts have long warned pose a threat to the region's fragile ecosystem. In northern and north-western Pakistan, flash floods killed at least 116 people while rescuers evacuated 1,300 stranded tourists from a mountainous district hit by landslides. Advertisement At least 35 people were reported missing in these areas, according to local officials. Household goods are strewn around next to buildings damaged by flash floods in Chositi village, Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir (Channi Anand/AP) Flash floods triggered by heavy rains and cloudbursts early on Friday killed at least 56 people in Buner district in Pakistan's north-western district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, a government administrator said. Dozens were injured as the deluge destroyed homes in villages in Buner. Rescuers backed by boats and helicopters worked to reach stranded residents. More than 415 people, mostly women and children, have died in rain-related incidents across the country since June 26. Deaths were reported from different parts of Pakistan on Thursday. 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. The Gilgit-Baltistan region in Pakistan 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. The region is 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 travellers to avoid affected areas. A study released this week by World Weather Attribution, a network of international scientists, found rainfall in Pakistan from June 24 to July 23 was 10% to 15% heavier because of global warming. In 2022, the country's worst monsoon season on record killed more than 1,700 people and caused an estimated 40 billion dollars in damage.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Flash floods triggered by torrential rains kill 120 in India and Pakistan
Flash floods triggered by torrential rains have killed at least 120 people and left scores of others missing in India and Pakistan over the past 24 hours, officials said, as rescuers brought to safety some 1,600 people from two mountainous districts in the neighbouring countries. Sudden, intense downpours over small areas known as cloudbursts are increasingly common in India's Himalayan regions and Pakistan's northern areas, which are prone to flash floods and landslides. Cloudbursts have the potential to wreak havoc by causing intense flooding and landslides, impacting thousands of people in the mountainous regions. Experts say cloudbursts have increased in recent years partly because of climate change, while damage from the storms has also increased because of unplanned development in mountain regions. In India-controlled Kashmir, rescuers searched for missing people in the remote Himalayan village of Chositi on Friday after flash floods a day earlier left at least 60 people dead and at least 80 missing, officials said. Officials halted rescue operations overnight but rescued at least 300 people on Thursday after a powerful cloudburst triggered floods and landslides. They said many missing people were believed to have been washed away. At least 50 seriously injured people were treated in local hospitals, many of them rescued from a stream filled with mud and debris. Disaster management official Mohammed Irshad said the number of missing people could increase. Weather officials forecast more heavy rains and floods in the area. Chositi, in Kashmir's Kishtwar district, is the last village accessible to motor vehicles on the route of an ongoing annual Hindu pilgrimage to a mountainous shrine at an altitude of 3,000 metres (9,500ft). Officials said the pilgrimage, which began on July 25 and was scheduled to end on September 5, was suspended. The devastating floods swept away the main community kitchen set up for the pilgrims, as well as dozens of vehicles and motorbikes. More than 200 pilgrims were in the kitchen at the time of the flood, which also damaged or washed away many of the homes clustered together in the foothills, officials said. Photos and videos on social media show extensive damage with household goods strewn next to damaged vehicles and homes in the village. Authorities made makeshift bridges on Friday to help stranded pilgrims cross a muddy water channel. Kishtwar district is home to multiple hydroelectric power projects, which experts have long warned pose a threat to the region's fragile ecosystem. In northern and north-western Pakistan, flash floods killed at least 60 people while rescuers evacuated 1,300 stranded tourists from a mountainous district hit by landslides. At least 35 people were reported missing in these areas, according to local officials. More than 360 people, mostly women and children, have died in rain-related incidents across Pakistan since June 26. 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. The Gilgit-Baltistan region in Pakistan 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. The region is 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 travellers to avoid affected areas. A study released this week by World Weather Attribution, a network of international scientists, found rainfall in Pakistan from June 24 to July 23 was 10% to 15% heavier because of global warming. In 2022, the country's worst monsoon season on record killed more than 1,700 people and caused an estimated 40 billion dollars in damage.
BreakingNews.ie
3 days ago
- Climate
- BreakingNews.ie
Flash floods triggered by torrential rains kill 120 in India and Pakistan
Flash floods triggered by torrential rains have killed at least 120 people and left scores of others missing in India and Pakistan over the past 24 hours, officials said, as rescuers brought to safety some 1,600 people from two mountainous districts in the neighbouring countries. Sudden, intense downpours over small areas known as cloudbursts are increasingly common in India's Himalayan regions and Pakistan's northern areas, which are prone to flash floods and landslides. Advertisement Cloudbursts have the potential to wreak havoc by causing intense flooding and landslides, impacting thousands of people in the mountainous regions. India's National Disaster Response Force and other security personnel carry out a rescue operation after flash floods in Chositi village, Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir (Channi Anand/AP) Experts say cloudbursts have increased in recent years partly because of climate change, while damage from the storms has also increased because of unplanned development in mountain regions. In India-controlled Kashmir, rescuers searched for missing people in the remote Himalayan village of Chositi on Friday after flash floods a day earlier left at least 60 people dead and at least 80 missing, officials said. Officials halted rescue operations overnight but rescued at least 300 people on Thursday after a powerful cloudburst triggered floods and landslides. Advertisement They said many missing people were believed to have been washed away. At least 50 seriously injured people were treated in local hospitals, many of them rescued from a stream filled with mud and debris. Disaster management official Mohammed Irshad said the number of missing people could increase. Weather officials forecast more heavy rains and floods in the area. Advertisement Chositi, in Kashmir's Kishtwar district, is the last village accessible to motor vehicles on the route of an ongoing annual Hindu pilgrimage to a mountainous shrine at an altitude of 3,000 metres (9,500ft). Stranded pilgrims are helped across a water channel using a makeshift bridge a day after flash floods in Chositi village, Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir (Channi Anand/AP) Officials said the pilgrimage, which began on July 25 and was scheduled to end on September 5, was suspended. The devastating floods swept away the main community kitchen set up for the pilgrims, as well as dozens of vehicles and motorbikes. More than 200 pilgrims were in the kitchen at the time of the flood, which also damaged or washed away many of the homes clustered together in the foothills, officials said. Advertisement Photos and videos on social media show extensive damage with household goods strewn next to damaged vehicles and homes in the village. Authorities made makeshift bridges on Friday to help stranded pilgrims cross a muddy water channel. Kishtwar district is home to multiple hydroelectric power projects, which experts have long warned pose a threat to the region's fragile ecosystem. In northern and north-western Pakistan, flash floods killed at least 60 people while rescuers evacuated 1,300 stranded tourists from a mountainous district hit by landslides. Advertisement At least 35 people were reported missing in these areas, according to local officials. Household goods are strewn around next to buildings damaged by flash floods in Chositi village, Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir (Channi Anand/AP) More than 360 people, mostly women and children, have died in rain-related incidents across Pakistan since June 26. 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. The Gilgit-Baltistan region in Pakistan 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. The region is 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 travellers to avoid affected areas. A study released this week by World Weather Attribution, a network of international scientists, found rainfall in Pakistan from June 24 to July 23 was 10% to 15% heavier because of global warming. In 2022, the country's worst monsoon season on record killed more than 1,700 people and caused an estimated 40 billion dollars in damage.
The Independent
08-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Dozens feared dead as flash floods and landslides rip through Himalayas in northern India
Dozens of people in India's Himachal Pradesh state are feared dead after the Himalayan region was hit with flash floods, cloudbursts, and landslides. A search operation with drones was underway to trace about 30 people who went missing following the cloudbursts and subsequent landslides that wreaked havoc in Kangra, Chamba, Shimla and Mandi districts, local officials said. Hundreds of houses, shops, roads and bridges in Himachal Pradesh were washed away after 23 flash floods and 16 landslides, triggered by the torrential weather, lashed the region since last week. Authorities said about 19 cloudbursts since last week have killed dozens of people. At least 80 people have died in rain-related incidents in Himachal Pradesh since 20 June, the state disaster management authority said on Tuesday. The India Meteorological Department has forecast continued heavy rainfall in multiple districts of the state, raising concerns about further flooding and landslides. A yellow warning of heavy rain at isolated places has been issued for the state till 10 July. One of the worst-hit districts was Mandi, which saw massive destruction and about 14 deaths on a single day last week following 10 incidents of cloudbursts. The town's MP, actor-turned-politician Kangana Ranaut, triggered outrage over the weekend after claiming she did not 'not have any funds for disaster relief or hold any cabinet post'. "MPs have work that is limited to parliament. We are very small in the scheme of things," she said while inspecting flood-affected area in her constituency. About 250 personnel from the national and state disaster response force, the Indian Army and home guards have been pressed in the rescue operation to find the 30 missing people, according to reports. More than 240 roads were shut in the state, with 170 of those being in Mandi district. "The administration is working around the clock to normalise public life. We request the public to remain calm and cooperate. Relief will reach every affected person, and all essential services will be restored at the earliest," Apoorv Devgan, the deputy commissioner of Mandi, told the Indian Express newspaper. Flash floods and cloudbursts are common in India's mountain states such as Himachal Pradesh during the monsoon season. Deforestation to make way for infrastructure development and expansion of hydel power projects has often led to calls by critics for environmental accountability and disaster preparedness in such states. Heavy rainfall and flooding last month l ed to dozens of deaths in India's northeastern states of Assam, Meghalaya and Mizoram. The devastation comes just days after rainwaters inundated Mumbai and other parts of western India with the early onset of the monsoon season. Studies show the monsoon in South Asia is getting worse due to the climate crisis, with a rise in the number of "extreme rain days", which means more rainfall falling over shorter periods, overwhelming the infrastructure.
