Flash floods leave dozens dead in Pakistan
July 3, 2016
Flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains overnight killed more than 30 people in northern Pakistan, many of the victims coming from the district Chitral, Pakistani officials said.
"Sixteen of the dead were offering prayers in the mosque when it was swept away by the flood," said Latifur Rehman, spokesman for the provincial disaster management authority.
The death toll included at least two Chinese engineers, who were killed when the roof of a construction site collapsed near the Tarbela Dam.
Rehman said the military was leading a rescue operation, adding that the armed forces were using helicopters to reach affected communities.
At least 14 bodies of the 31 people feared dead had been recovered, said Pakistan's National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
The flash floods "fully destroyed" 35 houses and "partially damaged" 47 others, the NDMA added in a statement.
Pervez Khattak, chief minister of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, said he ordered disaster management officials to react swiftly and provide affected communities with food, medicine, tents and other relief goods.
He added that the families would receive compensation of $300 (270 euros) for each victim of the natural disaster.
In 2010, nearly 2,000 people were killed across the country due to flooding that affected one-fifth of its area.
ls/bk (AFP, AP, dpa)