Deadly flash floods hit Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province

Heavy monsoon rains have caused deadly flash floods in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on July 2, 2016. The worst hit was province's Chitral district where hill torrent caused extensive damage to houses and other infrastructure.

On Sunday, July 3, authorities reported 43 people have been killed, but revised the number to 33 on Monday, July 4. 13 or 14 people are still missing. 4 people were seriously injured.

Torrential rain and ensuing floods struck at around 21:00 [local time, 16:00 UTC] on Saturday, July 2, 2016, in the village of Ursoon, about 40 km (25 miles) south of Chitral town, the Floodlist reported.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provincial Disaster Management Agency (PDMA) said today that 19 houses have been completely and 27 partially destroyed. The flooding has also caused considerable damage to irrigation channels and water supply. 

Rescue, backup and search operation are continuing in the affected countries and personnel of Pak Army besides district administration, NDMA and PDMA are actively taking part in the relief and delivery operations.

This mountainous province is vulnerable to flooding. It was hit badly by floods and landslides in April 2016, when over 90 people died. At the time, Kohistan and Shanlga were among the worst affected districts. As many as 36 people died in floods in the province in March this year.

Many of the deaths were thought to have been caused by collapsing buildings. "Poorly built houses in these areas are known to be susceptible to collapse during periods of heavy rain," Floodlist's Richard Davies said.

Featured image: Ursoon flood – July 2016. Credit: DDMU Chitral (via Twitter)