PESHAWAR: At least 37 people have died in rain-related incidents as an ongoing monsoon spell triggered flash floods and landslides, damaging homes, crops, livestock and roads across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab.
While people were still grappling with the impact of the disaster in several districts, including Gujranwala and Sialkot, which recorded 245mm and 139mm of rainfall respectively, India substantially increased the release of excess water without officially confirming the data.
The provincial disaster management authority placed the Marala and Khanki headworks at medium flood levels and Qadirabad at a low flood level.
The death toll from flash floods and other rain-related incidents rose to 20 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 17 in Punjab, while rain-triggered landslides in KP, GB and AJK damaged roads, crops and homes.
According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department, the current spell, which began on July 19, is expected to continue in KP until July 23.
The latest fatalities in KP were reported from North Waziristan, where two men drowned after being swept away by a flash flood in the Tochi River, Rescue 1122 spokesperson Noor Islam said. Their bodies were later recovered from the river.
The official warned that the rains had caused exceptionally high water levels in the Tochi River, where flood-like conditions persisted.
However, the KP PDMA said water levels and flows in all rivers and streams across the province were currently normal and that all district administrations had been directed to remain on alert.
Earlier, a family of four, including two children, died when the roof of their house collapsed in Sararogha tehsil of Upper South Waziristan, Additional Deputy Commissioner Fazal Wadood said.
A report released by the KP PDMA earlier in the day, which did not include the North Waziristan drownings, said 18 people had died and 19 had been injured in rain-related incidents across the province since Sunday.
The authority said 23 houses had been partially damaged and seven destroyed, while 13 cattle had perished during the four-day period.
Heavy rains also disrupted daily life in Lower South Waziristan, where landslides blocked the Wana-Gomal Zam Road, one of the region’s key trade and communication routes.
Flash floods also damaged agricultural land in several areas. A district official confirmed the road blockage to Dawn on Wednesday after landslides struck the area.
Residents said large boulders had fallen from the mountains at several points along the road, while deep potholes had developed at various locations. Several culverts, bridges and protection walls were also reportedly damaged.
As intermittent heavy rain lashed several cities in Punjab, with Gujranwala the worst hit, the death toll in the province rose to 17.
Of the deaths, 12 were caused by the collapse of buildings or other structures, two by lightning strikes and three by electrocution, the PDMA said.
According to the Water and Sanitation Agency, Gujranwala recorded a record 245mm of rain, while Lahore received 123mm, Sialkot 139mm and Mandi Bahauddin 138mm.
The PDMA said 117mm of rain was recorded in Narowal, 85mm in Hafizabad, 95mm in Gujrat, 70mm in Chakwal, 64mm in Okara, 35mm in Jhang, 33mm in Layyah and 32mm in Jhelum.
Water levels in the River Chenab continued to rise, with a moderate flood recorded at Marala Headworks on Wednesday.
At Marala Barrage, inflows increased from 84,895 cusecs on Tuesday morning to 132,169 cusecs by Wednesday noon and then to 275,608 cusecs at night.
Outflows rose from 62,622 cusecs to 113,169 cusecs and then to 258,608 cusecs respectively.
The rising trend was also recorded downstream. According to PDMA data released at 9pm on Wednesday, water flow at Qadirabad Barrage increased from 97,653 cusecs to 158,539 cusecs, while Khanki Barrage recorded an increase from 113,548 cusecs to 214,330 cusecs.
At Trimmu Barrage, inflows rose from 33,601 cusecs to 64,483 cusecs.
Meanwhile, the PDMA rejected reports circulating on social media and some news channels claiming that a 900,000-cusec flood wave was moving through the Chenab River.
In Narowal, erosion continued at two points along the Dek drain, putting nearby villages and agricultural land at risk.
Residents said the embankment near Bale Bajwa village had suffered erosion and warned that a breach could damage several villages, including Chak Isa, Wayan, Shahzada, Mehndipur and Khede.
Residents also reported erosion near Dogri Hindlan village in Pasrur tehsil and called for urgent action by the district administration and irrigation authorities.
In Gilgit-Baltistan, cloudburst-induced floods and landslides caused damage in Losbala village in Astore district, while the Astore Valley Road was closed after erosion and landslides.
According to the Gilgit-Baltistan Disaster Management Authority, flash floods and landslides following a cloudburst damaged homes, agricultural land, electricity supplies, water channels, crops, livestock and infrastructure in Astore.
The Communication and Works Department in Astore said a severe landslide at Kachek had diverted the Astore River towards the road, causing erosion and damaging the Astore Valley Road, which was closed to traffic until further notice.
Authorities advised passengers and tourists to avoid unnecessary travel, saying emergency measures were under way to restore the road.
Local people said several travellers, including tourists, had been stranded.
The GBDMA said relief operations were continuing in Astore. It said rising water levels in rivers and streams following rapid glacier melt had put roads and bridges at risk in several areas.
A bridge on the Shimshal Valley Road in Hunza and a suspension bridge in Bagrot were also under threat.
In Gilgit’s Jutal area, rising water levels in the Hunza-Nagar River placed eight households at risk.
The Met Office has forecast further rain and warned of possible glacial lake outburst floods in Gilgit-Baltistan until July 26. – The Dawn/ANN
