PESHAWAR: Torrential rains and flash floods continued to devastate life and property in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and tribal areas on Thursday, killing dozens of people.
The death toll since Wednesday has risen to 113. More than 400,000 people have been affected.
The provincial government has declared a state of emergency and asked people living along the banks of the Swat and Kabul rivers and their tributaries in Peshawar and Charsadda districts to move to other areas.
Lack of resources and planning has put the lives of thousands of people at risk in Peshawar and Charsadda where the Kabul and Swat rivers converge.
The district administration appeared to be helpless in moving the stranded people to safe places.
Eighteen people were killed in Kohat, another 18 in Dera Ismail Khan, nine in Charsadda, seven in Mohmand Agency, two in Abbottabad and two in Karak and Tank. Over 1,000 houses were damaged in D.I. Khan, Tank and the adjacent Frontier Region. Water level at Chashma Barrage is also rising.
A large number of people have taken shelter in schools and mosques in Peshawar and are in dire need of clothes, food and water.
Flood water has inundated thousands of houses in the provincial capital. With no sign of any rescue and relief work, people are seething in anger.
“Around 70 families, mostly women and children, have taken shelter in the Government High School No 1 in Peshawar. They left their homes empty-handed when gushing flood water inundated their localities on Charssada Road,” said Amjid Khan, a social worker.
Traffic on the Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway and on parts of the GT Road has been suspended.
Inter-Services Public Relations said that troops had been carrying out rescue and relief activities since Wednesday.
The situation in Malakand division was even more chaotic. Flash floods caused widespread devastations in Swat, washing away houses, bridges, hospitals, roads and communication networks.
Swat river was in high flood and the outflow at Munda Headwork was over 300,000 cusecs, according to the flood warning centre.
Officials in Swat could not be contacted because telephone lines have stopped functioning. Flood water has entered the Mingora bazaar.
Army was called in for evacuation work in Peshawar, Charsadda, Swat and other flood-hit areas.
Provincial Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain appealed to the federal government, international community and philanthropists to come forward and help the marooned people.
Addressing a press conference, he said the provincial government had released funds to districts and 50 boats were being brought by a C-130 aircraft from Karachi. The boats will reach Peshawar by Friday evening.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly session has been postponed for an indefinite period. Senior Minister Bashir Ahmad Bilour informed the house that 106 people had been killed across the province.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority said that 200 Chinese nationals were stranded in Dobair valley of Kohistan district. Flood swept away two camps of a Chinese company in the area.
Witnesses said that Swat was in complete chaos. Amir Muhammad Khan, a social worker, told Dawn from Bahrian that flood had swept away a large number of shops, houses and hotels in the town and caused severe damage to the infrastructure.
People were living in the open and needed immediate evacuation and relief, he said. A large number of people were marooned in flooded localities because the flood water has submerged the main road between Bahrian and Mingora.
Mr Khan said the road between Madian and Bahrian had been severely damaged. People have taken shelter in mosques. Household goods and appliances have been washed away.
About 102 workers and security guards working at an irrigation project in Malakand have been stranded since Wednesday. Parts of Batkhela bazaar are under water.
About 47 people are reported to have been missing in Shangla district. Five bodies were found on Thursday.
Officials said that floods had washed away 297 houses, 46 bridges, five mosques and four schools and some basic health units and damaged telecommunication network, electricity lines, link roads and crops.
Two residential colonies comprising 53 houses were destroyed in Alpuri, the district headquarters of Shangla.
The provincial government has declared a state of emergency and asked people living along the banks of the Swat and Kabul rivers and their tributaries in Peshawar and Charsadda districts to move to other areas.
Lack of resources and planning has put the lives of thousands of people at risk in Peshawar and Charsadda where the Kabul and Swat rivers converge.
The district administration appeared to be helpless in moving the stranded people to safe places.
Eighteen people were killed in Kohat, another 18 in Dera Ismail Khan, nine in Charsadda, seven in Mohmand Agency, two in Abbottabad and two in Karak and Tank. Over 1,000 houses were damaged in D.I. Khan, Tank and the adjacent Frontier Region. Water level at Chashma Barrage is also rising.
A large number of people have taken shelter in schools and mosques in Peshawar and are in dire need of clothes, food and water.
Flood water has inundated thousands of houses in the provincial capital. With no sign of any rescue and relief work, people are seething in anger.
“Around 70 families, mostly women and children, have taken shelter in the Government High School No 1 in Peshawar. They left their homes empty-handed when gushing flood water inundated their localities on Charssada Road,” said Amjid Khan, a social worker.
Traffic on the Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway and on parts of the GT Road has been suspended.
Inter-Services Public Relations said that troops had been carrying out rescue and relief activities since Wednesday.
The situation in Malakand division was even more chaotic. Flash floods caused widespread devastations in Swat, washing away houses, bridges, hospitals, roads and communication networks.
Swat river was in high flood and the outflow at Munda Headwork was over 300,000 cusecs, according to the flood warning centre.
Officials in Swat could not be contacted because telephone lines have stopped functioning. Flood water has entered the Mingora bazaar.
Army was called in for evacuation work in Peshawar, Charsadda, Swat and other flood-hit areas.
Provincial Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain appealed to the federal government, international community and philanthropists to come forward and help the marooned people.
Addressing a press conference, he said the provincial government had released funds to districts and 50 boats were being brought by a C-130 aircraft from Karachi. The boats will reach Peshawar by Friday evening.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly session has been postponed for an indefinite period. Senior Minister Bashir Ahmad Bilour informed the house that 106 people had been killed across the province.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority said that 200 Chinese nationals were stranded in Dobair valley of Kohistan district. Flood swept away two camps of a Chinese company in the area.
Witnesses said that Swat was in complete chaos. Amir Muhammad Khan, a social worker, told Dawn from Bahrian that flood had swept away a large number of shops, houses and hotels in the town and caused severe damage to the infrastructure.
People were living in the open and needed immediate evacuation and relief, he said. A large number of people were marooned in flooded localities because the flood water has submerged the main road between Bahrian and Mingora.
Mr Khan said the road between Madian and Bahrian had been severely damaged. People have taken shelter in mosques. Household goods and appliances have been washed away.
About 102 workers and security guards working at an irrigation project in Malakand have been stranded since Wednesday. Parts of Batkhela bazaar are under water.
About 47 people are reported to have been missing in Shangla district. Five bodies were found on Thursday.
Officials said that floods had washed away 297 houses, 46 bridges, five mosques and four schools and some basic health units and damaged telecommunication network, electricity lines, link roads and crops.
Two residential colonies comprising 53 houses were destroyed in Alpuri, the district headquarters of Shangla.
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