Lighting crashes: Downpours claim nine lives in two days

At least three, including a couple, killed in Abbottabad

PESHAWAR: Heavy rainfall has killed nine people over the last two days in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

A report issued by the Provincial Disaster Management Authority confirmed two people died in Shangla and as many in Dir as well as Battagram. Also, three people lost their lives in Abbottabad either due to drowning or roof collapse incedents.

The report added nine people were also injured due to incidents triggered by the inclement weather in the province. At least five houses were destroyed by the rain. Some were inundated with water, while others collapsed completely. Meanwhile, a house was damaged in the rain.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department had issued a warning of a possible glacial lake outburst flood that could hit Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral.

A notification was issued on July 27 which stated G-B and Chitral were likely to receive rain over the next three days. To avoid any potential casualties, local communities were advised to remain alert. At the same time, concerned authorities were also ordered to take precautionary measures to protect residents in their respective areas.

The Pakistan Monsoon (JAS) 2016 Rainfall Progress report stated that on a regional scale, there has been variability in the downpours. The rain has been well above the usual average. In recent times, K-P was lashed by 99.7 mm of rain.

Death toll rising

In Abbottabad, three people, including a couple, were killed, while several houses and government structures were damaged during the recent rains, police and revenue department sources said on Thursday.

The police added the couple was later identified as Tali Zar Khan and his wife Naseema Bibi of Shamlai, Battagram. The two were crossing a stream known as Nandehar Khor when the water swept them away.

The locals recovered the bodies about a kilometre away from where they fell in.

In Lora village of Abbottabad, Mahnoor Bibi, a student of Class eight, was buried alive when a heavy boulder and stones fell on her house. Other family members escaped unhurt, while four other houses nearby were completely damaged.

In Ghazi tehsil of Haripur, a portion of the government boys primary school was damaged. Also, a boundary wall in Aldho village fell, while a mud house collapsed due to rains in Hansan Pur village.

In April, at least 45 people died in one day as rain battered several parts of the province. Eleven districts in Hazara and Malakand remain high-risk zones and there is little in terms of relief.

Casualties in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa keep increasing every year with isolated instances of weather anomalies. Unfortunately, it is the same areas where disaster strikes repeatedly.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 29^th, 2016.