119 more killed as floods hit Punjab

ISLAMABAD: More devastation caused by unprecedented rains and floods was reported on Sunday as the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said 119 people had died in the last 24 hours. This took the death toll to 1,033 and injuries to over 1,500.

People involved in rescue and relief operation believe the causalities from rain- and flood-related incidents might increase manifold once the ongoing spell comes to an end. On Sunday, floodwater in rivers entered Punjab regions, while Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa was cut off from other parts of the country. In Punjab and Sindh, people living in villages along the rivers have been directed to move to safer places. The river floods, when they enter the Sindh province, might bring another phase of devastation there, experts fear.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Sunday announced a grant of Rs10 billion for the Balochistan province to cope with the situation. Speaking to the media in Jaffarabad after visiting the flood-affected areas, including Haji Allah Dino village in Balochistan, he said he had never witnessed in his lifetime such a massive destruction wrecked by unprecedented floods and rainfall across the country. He said the impact of natural calamities could not be overcome by raising slogans, giving statements and levelling allegations.

Floodwater had submerged Rajanpur, Rahimyar Khan and Ghotki areas. He said during 2010, Pakistan faced a huge deluge, but it was restricted to Sindh River, but the recent devastation had been widespread and Sindh and Balochistan provinces were badly battered.

In KP, the heavy downpours had led to swollen rivers and water channels in Swat and Kalam, sweeping away hotels and homes instantly, he said, adding hundreds of people lost their lives, crops were damaged while the stagnant water would create problems.

The PM said the federal government was providing Rs25,000 to each flood affected family out of the allocated grant of Rs38 billion through the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP).

The PM was informed by Balochistan chief secretary that 20 districts in the provinces were badly affected, including Killa Saifullah and Killa Abdullah and about 1.3 million population braced the worst situation. He said a total of 65,000 houses were completly destroyed whereas the Quetta-Sukkur road link had been cut off due to collapse of bridges. A total of 25 small dams in the province were breached and 78 others had developed cracks. A total of 450 solar tubewells were damaged while millions of acres of agriculture land had been affected.

According to official data, the death toll from rains and floods had reached 1,033 and 1,500 individuals got injuries since the start of monsoon season. The heavy rains lashing out 110 districts of the country inflicted multiple life, property, and infrastructure losses. The flood affected over 350 million people, caused losses of over 800,000 livestock and damaged over one million houses across the country. The heavy rains and floods in the country have washed away standing crops in various parts of the country.

Officials say this year’s flooding affected more than 33 million people -- one in seven Pakistanis -- destroying or badly damaging nearly a million homes. The NDMA said more than two million acres of cultivated crops have been wiped out, 3,451 kilometres of roads destroyed, and 149 bridges washed away.

At least 17 people lost their lives and six got injured during heavy rains, and flash floods in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), said Gilgit-Baltistan Disaster Management Authority (GBDMA) on Sunday.

According to an official statement, during rains and flash floods, 418 houses were completely destroyed while 257 were partially damaged, and the GB faced losses of Rs7,406 million. According to GBDMA, 22 powerhouses were damaged in the Gilgit-Baltistan floods out of which 19 were temporarily restored by the authorities.

Commissioner Dera Ismail Khan Division Amir Afaq Sunday said the next 48 hours were very important keeping in view the passage of a torrent having 600,000 to 700,000 cusecs of water through the Indus River.

Highest water flow was recorded in River Kabul at Nowshera around 42,198 cusecs while Indus River was in high flood at Chashma Canal with water flow recorded as 502,000 cusecs.

KP Minister of Local Government and Rural Development Faisal Amin Gandapur said that all expenses of relief activities including provision of shelter would be provided by the provincial government, adding, a blank check had been received from the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan for the purpose.

District Police Officer (DPO), Lower Kohistan, Zulfiqar Jadoon, Saturday said that at least 16 people were killed, including five women and three children, due to the rains and flash floods during the last two days in Lower Kohistan.

On the directives of KP Chief Minister Mahmood Khan, two helicopters have been provided to the district administration of Swat to carry out rescue and relief operation in Kalam.

Besides colossal human and material losses, the devastating floods have brought havoc to communication infrastructure, including roads and bridges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where several upper areas of Swat and Dir districts were cut off from the rest of the country hampering relief operations.

In Sindh, five more people, including three family members, died in roof collapse incidents, while many villages were flooded owing to breaches. Reports said that Mehar and Warrah city of the Sindh might be inundated due to breaches in Gharah Drain and Suprio Dyke.

Federal Minister Syed Naveed Qamar and SACM Syed Qasim visited different areas of Tando Muhammad Khan. Sindh Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) on Sunday appealed for safe drinking water and shelters, which are urgently required for flood survivors. It claimed that all possible assistance was being provided to the flood victims.