Pakistan monsoon death toll hits 657; nearly 1,000 injured: Officials

At least 657 people died and nearly 1,000 were injured since late June in rain-related incidents in Pakistan, according to officials.

In a media briefing on Sunday, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Spokes­person Tayyab Shah said that heavy monsoon rains are expected to persist until August 22.

He warned that two to three more monsoon spells are expected to hit the country in September. Shah noted that this year, monsoon rainfall had been 50 to 60 per cent heavier than last year.

This year’s monsoon season ranks among the most destructive in recent memory, he said.

According to NDMA, 657 people -- 171 children, 94 women, and 392 men -- died and 929 others were injured in rain-related incidents across Pakistan since June 26.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the worst-hit province with 390 deaths -- 288 men, 59 children, and 43 women.

In Punjab, 164 people -- 70 children, 63 men, and 31 women -- died in rain-related incidents since June 26.

While Sindh recorded 28 deaths, including 14 children and 4 women; in Balochistan, 20 people, including 11 children, died.

At least 32 people, including eight children, died in Gilgit-Baltistan, while 15 people, including five minors, were killed as heavy rains lashed Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Eight people, including 4 children, died in Islamabad.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Director General Asfandyar Khattak in a press conference on Sunday said around 150 people are missing from Buner and Shangla districts.

According to officials, 84 people, including 21 members of a family preparing for a wedding, were killed in flash floods triggered by cloudbursts in Buner.

Rescue operations are underway and five armed forces helicopters are at the disposal of the provincial government, Khattak said, adding that the provincial government has released PKR 1.5 billion for relief activities.

The PDMA DG said 33 trucks of non-food items had reached Buner, eight had reached Swat, and seven had reached Bajaur, while additional supplies were also being dispatched.

Meanwhile, investigators have recovered the black box of the helicopter that crashed during a rescue operation near Peshawar, officials said on Monday.

The MI-17 helicopter had crashed on August 15 while transporting relief supplies to flood-affected residents in the Salarzai area of Bajaur, resulting in the death of all five crew members.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed federal ministers to supervise relief operations in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Under the PM’s Relief Package, truckloads of supplies are being dispatched to the affected districts. The relief goods include food rations, tents, and medicines, which are being handed over to the respective district administrations, officials said.

According to the education department, the devastating rains and flash floods have completely destroyed 61 government schools, while 414 others were partially damaged in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.