Flash floods damage or destroy thousands of homes in northern Afghanistan

Heavy rains caused severe flash flooding in the provinces of Baghlan and Samangan, northern Afghanistan, leaving thousands of partially or totally damaged houses and at least 4 injured people, National Disaster Management Authority head Sibghatullah Sayad confirmed on May 5, 2020.

On May 2, flash flooding in the Baghlan Province damaged crops and infrastructure, with the district of Tala Wa Barfak as the worst-affected. A coal mine was also inundated, trapping four laborers 4 m (13 feet) underground. The victims were initially believed to be dead, but local media said the injured workers had been rescued by residents.

On May 5, Sayad confirmed that more than 1 100 homes were partially or totally damaged in the province of Samangan, particularly the provincial capital Aybak and the neighboring districts of Hazrat Sultan, Khuram-o-Sarbagh, Roiduab, and Dara-e-Suf Payan. Wide swaths of farmlands and gardens were ravaged, killing more than 300 cattle.

Sayad noted that an assessment has been initiated to identify the exact extent of damage and the number of affected people.

Several countries in Central Asia have been suffering from severe flooding due to unstable weather. In the border areas of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, more than 75 000 people were displaced after a reservoir dam failure led to inundations. In Krygyzstan, houses and infrastructure were damaged after huge flooding and mudflows in the region of Batken.

Featured image credit: Syed Mohammad Erfan Khatami