Pakistan floods death toll over 800

The death toll from flooding in northern Pakistan is now over 800 with at least 150 missing. Rescue workers are struggling to reach villagers, many of whom have been filmed clinging to walls and rooftops as waters rage around them.

Reuters

Hundreds of homes and vast areas of farmland were destroyed in the north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and Pakistani Kashmir.

The main road to China is reported to be cut and communities are isolated as monsoon rains caused flash floods and landslides.

“This is the worst ever flood in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the country's history,” provincial information minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said. “The death toll in floods and rain-related incidents has risen up to 800 across the province.”

The United Nations says almost a million people have been affected by the flooding, and at least 45 bridges destroyed around Khyber.

Peshawar, the main city in the north-west, and the districts of Swat and Shangla were cut off from the rest of country.

"Flood waters have risen to 10 feet and people are sitting on rooftops," Peshawar resident Nisar Mahmood told RFI.

Police said five people were drowned when their boat capsized near the north-western town of Nowshehra on Saturday.

The army says it had sent boats and helicopters to rescue stranded people and military engineers were attempting to open roads and divert the waters from key routes. 

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Anwer Kazmi, Edhi NGO, Pakistan

Paul Nolan

“The situation is getting better but it will take time to normalise the situation,” says Anwer Kazmi of the Edhi rescue organisation. “I think the death will rise because we are only receiving information from the cities.”

Pakistan's weather bureau says an "unprecedented" 312 millimetres of rain have fallen in 36 hours in the north-west but predicts only scattered showers during coming days.

The worst-hit area is Malakand, where 102 people have died and 16,000 are marooned, says provincial relief commissioner Shakil Qadir.

About 2,800 Pakistani holidaymakers are stranded in the Swat valley and efforts were being made to airlift them to safety in helicopters.

Monsoon rains have also killed 25 people in the south-western province of Baluchistan over the past few days, according to disaster management official Ataullah Khan.

Flash floods have affected eight districts, he says, adding that around 275,000 people had been affected and more than 15,000 houses destroyed.

At least 65 people are reported dead in floods and landslides in neighbouring Afghanistan.