Massive floods across Pakistan | Thousands Killed

[Patriot]

PESHAWAR: At least 230 people have been reportedly killed while scores others have gone missing amid the deadliest spree of incidents occurred once in last three decades, wreaked by heavy downpours and floodwater all across Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa province, media reports and television footages reported Thursday night.

Many link bridges have been washed away, rendering many areas cutoff from other parts of cities and districts and leaving scores of people trapped at isolated places.

Heavy showers have inflicted havoc, devastation in Swat and Shangla districts as furious floodwater, overflowing from River Swat, has played massive destruction in residential areas.

Meanwhile, as many as 16 people have been killed by land sliding in Alandar locality in Shangla district.

In Shangla district alone, more than 90 people have been killed in separate incidents as a result of two-day long spate of the torrential rains.

25 people have been wiped out by floodwater in Swat alone while Kabal, Matta, Bari Kot, Charbagh, Khwaza Khela, Behrin and Babuzai areas are no longer connected with other parts of country owing to destruction of link bridges.

Floodwater has demolished numerous shops and houses in Kalam whereas land sliding, in Surkhel Balabanda locality of Batgram, has killed three brothers and sisters.

A central bridge, a main road and dozens of houses have been inundated by floodwater near Thakot and Oralai due to flesh flood in River Indus.

On second consecutive day, Sahrah-e-Kaghan remained closed for traffic by dint of incessant spree of cruel downpours and back-to-back incidents of land sliding, trapping thousands of tourists in Shogran, Kaghan and Naran districts.

Hundreds of houses have been inundated by floodwater at Kasar place in Kohistan district while the residents of over 10 houses have reportedly gone missing as a result of devastating floods.

The link bridge between Palis and Patan districts has been submerged in floodwater. River Kanhar has been feared to be in high-floods soon at Mansehra District, prompting authorities to evict people from areas settled along riverside.

Civil Hospital, police station and main bazaar have been evacuated in view of anticipated floods in Balakot District.

12 dead bodies have been pulled out from rubble after the Jurma Bridge in Kohat Division collapsed following the deadliest floods in the history.

Four people have been drowned in floodwater in Nowsehra District while over 25 people are still missing.

Doctors, paramedical staff and patients trapped in District Headquarter Hospital have climbed on rooftop after floodwater has inundated hospital up to many feet.

A total of 780 houses, 34 school buildings, 6 main bridges, 28 link bridges, 11 mosques and thousands acres land, meant for irrigation, have been washed away by floodwater at isolated places in Upper Dir.

At least 11 persons including six children have been trampled to death following the collapse of house in Lower Dir while another 21 persons have been lashed out by floodwater.

Nearly 9 persons died and 42 others were injured after floodwater, flowing out from River Swat and Jendi, played annihilation in Charsadda District.

Several villages and the legislative assembly building have been flooded after River Gilgit was seen in high-flood.

Five children have drowned in floodwater in Bannu District while over 40 houses have collapsed in Tehsil Bara in Khyber Agency.PESHAWAR: At least 230 people have been reportedly killed while scores others have gone missing amid the deadliest spree of incidents occurred once in last three decades, wreaked by heavy downpours and floodwater all across Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa province, media reports and television footages reported Thursday night.

Many link bridges have been washed away, rendering many areas cutoff from other parts of cities and districts and leaving scores of people trapped at isolated places.

Heavy showers have inflicted havoc, devastation in Swat and Shangla districts as furious floodwater, overflowing from River Swat, has played massive destruction in residential areas.

Meanwhile, as many as 16 people have been killed by land sliding in Alandar locality in Shangla district.

In Shangla district alone, more than 90 people have been killed in separate incidents as a result of two-day long spate of the torrential rains.

25 people have been wiped out by floodwater in Swat alone while Kabal, Matta, Bari Kot, Charbagh, Khwaza Khela, Behrin and Babuzai areas are no longer connected with other parts of country owing to destruction of link bridges.

Floodwater has demolished numerous shops and houses in Kalam whereas land sliding, in Surkhel Balabanda locality of Batgram, has killed three brothers and sisters.

A central bridge, a main road and dozens of houses have been inundated by floodwater near Thakot and Oralai due to flesh flood in River Indus.

On second consecutive day, Sahrah-e-Kaghan remained closed for traffic by dint of incessant spree of cruel downpours and back-to-back incidents of land sliding, trapping thousands of tourists in Shogran, Kaghan and Naran districts.

Hundreds of houses have been inundated by floodwater at Kasar place in Kohistan district while the residents of over 10 houses have reportedly gone missing as a result of devastating floods.

The link bridge between Palis and Patan districts has been submerged in floodwater. River Kanhar has been feared to be in high-floods soon at Mansehra District, prompting authorities to evict people from areas settled along riverside.

Civil Hospital, police station and main bazaar have been evacuated in view of anticipated floods in Balakot District.

12 dead bodies have been pulled out from rubble after the Jurma Bridge in Kohat Division collapsed following the deadliest floods in the history.

Four people have been drowned in floodwater in Nowsehra District while over 25 people are still missing.

Doctors, paramedical staff and patients trapped in District Headquarter Hospital have climbed on rooftop after floodwater has inundated hospital up to many feet.

A total of 780 houses, 34 school buildings, 6 main bridges, 28 link bridges, 11 mosques and thousands acres land, meant for irrigation, have been washed away by floodwater at isolated places in Upper Dir.

At least 11 persons including six children have been trampled to death following the collapse of house in Lower Dir while another 21 persons have been lashed out by floodwater.

Nearly 9 persons died and 42 others were injured after floodwater, flowing out from River Swat and Jendi, played annihilation in Charsadda District.

Several villages and the legislative assembly building have been flooded after River Gilgit was seen in high-flood.

Five children have drowned in floodwater in Bannu District while over 40 houses have collapsed in Tehsil Bara in Khyber Agency.
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Wow I am amazed.Looks like Pakistanis and News Media just like drama.The air crash was a dramatic event and the tv news channel gave coverage exclusively for whole day and even today but no coverage of rains and floods?They just announce x number of people have died due to rains..next news.Ridiculous.
Rains, floods kill 230 in KP; scores missing - GEO.tv
RIP

 

[sparklingway]

199 die in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa rains, floods

Friday, July 30, 2010
Emergency declared across province as widespread destruction caused; 12 die in Rawalakot bus crash caused by rain

By Nisar Mahmood

PESHAWAR: The death toll from torrential rain and floods in various parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the last two days reached 199 as dozens more casualties were reported on Thursday.

The heavy showers that continued for the last 36 hours caused floods in almost all rivers and streams of the province that washed away hundreds of homes and shops, dozens of bridges, roads and destroyed communication networks, besides livestock and standing crops.

According to figures gathered from different reports and dispatches, 60 persons were killed in Shangla, Kohistan and Battagram, 35 in Swat, 11 in Lower Dir and 10 in Upper Dir, 21 in Kohat, nine in Charsadda, five in Haripur, three in Shabqadar, two each in Takhtbhai, Tank and Abbottabad, five were reportedly killed in Mansehra on Wednesday and seven on Thursday, one each in Chitral and Bannu, while in Peshawar district eight people were killed in Jangali and Telaband, three each in Qadirabad, Gulbahar, Matani and Budbher during the last two days, and four persons were electrocuted and 100 others were missing in Nowshera following flood and torrential rains.

Thousands of people were trapped and hundreds more injured in rain-related incidents in the province, as 400 people had been stranded since Wednesday night and had taken shelter in a petrol pump in Chakdara, Lower Dir, about 3,000 population of Dildar Garhai in Charsadda, 45 families in Lala Killey Charsadda and hundreds more in Shabqadar and other villages of the district.

According to Charsadda district coordination officer, the flash floods had affected about 100,000 population till filing of this report, but the district administration had just two boats while 200 boats were needed to rescue the trapped people.

The Peshawar-Charsadda Road, Peshawar-Rashaka section of the Motorway and Peshawar-Nowshera GT Road were closed for all kinds of traffic. All train service to and from Peshawar was also suspended.

In Peshawar, Pak Army boats of Brigade No 102 rescuedstranded people from Budhni, Sardar Colony, Taru Jaba, GT Road, Ring Road and Charsadda Road localities, while Provincial Disaster Management Authority dispatched 2,000 more sandbags to Mian Gujar for strengthening embankments. Army helicopters also took part in the rescue operation in Peshawar, Charsadda and Nowshera.

The provincial government is said to have bought 40 boats in Karachi and had hired C-130 for the boats transportation. Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani also announced sending 15 boats and 75 divers from Karachi. Chief Minister Ameer Haider Hoti tried to visit the affected areas in Peshawar and Charsadda but could not go there due to floods and roads’ blockade.

The floods washed away 16 bridges in Swat, three bridges/culverts in Mansehra, Dildar Garhi, Jindi bridge and Palai embankment in Charsadda, Zulam bridge, Khazana bypass bridge, Odigram Bridge, Chakdarra bridge, Mararo bridge and Khal suspension bridge in Lower Dir, besides Timergara bypass road and approach road of Hayaserai bridge, Jan Bati bridge in Upper Dir and Jarma Bridge in Kohat, while Hangu Bridge on the River Kurram situated at main Thal-Parachinar road was partially damaged.

The bridges washed away in Swat included Shamozai, Barikot, Kanju, Baghdherai, Khwazakhela, Gaimal, Matta Baryam, Marghuzar, Mingora, Landikas, Katalai, Charbagh, Manglawar, Kabal, Mingora Babuzai and Bahrain areas.

A local social worker, Hashim Ali, told The News that about 185 houses in the seven tehsils of the district had been destroyed. A local official pleading anonymity told this correspondent that about 35 people including two women were washed away in Khwazakhela, Matta, Fatehpur and Asala areas.

The sources said about 300 shops had been destroyed in the district, adding that the hotels in Madyan and Bahrain had also been washed away. Reports suggested that about 500 houses on the banks of the nullahs in Mingora city, Kadelai, Kokarai, Janbil, Landikas, Bangladesh and Banr were inundated.

Besides, three flour mills including Faizabad Flour Mills, Mingora Flour Mills and Swat Flour Mills were also affected. The stock of wheat had been affected by the floodwater. Eyewitnesses said three mosques in Mingora city and two mosques in Bahrain had also been washed away.

The sources said about 120 people had been stranded in Charbagh, Ningolai, and Khwazakhela due to flood. Apart from other destruction caused by the flood in the district, about 120 vehicles were also washed away.

The rains also affected the police installations in the district and the police lines were inundated and policemen were besieged in the lines. Mingora Police Station was also inundated. Expressing concern over the inadequate arrangements by the local administration, the affected people asked the provincial and federal governments to provide instant relief through helicopters as all the roads and bridges had been broken.

Five men drowned in various areas, while 60 went missing in Kohistan district yesterday. In another incident in Gajhbori village three men died while an employee of a mobile phone company drowned in Siran River in Tanawal area of Mansehra district. Roads in Siran and Kaghan valleys remained blocked due to landslides at Ghanool and Kiwai. At Barar Kot in Garhi Habibullah, Kunhar River was flooded and its water spilled over into settlements on its banks while in Hassa College, Gul Dheri, Jared and Shino people were shifted to safer places.

Five persons drowned in River Indus in Battagram as two men drowned at Shakae village, Gul Muhammad at Kas Pul and two more were found dead in Pazang village. Seventy shops and several houses collapsed in Karak Bazaar in Battagram, while in Pir Harhi village, a mud avalanche fell on a house, in which 11 persons were present. Villagers were trying to rescue the victims till filing of this report.

Khan Khwar Bridge at Bisham was washed away, cutting off the northern link from the rest of the country. Floodwater also damaged a camp of Chinese engineers working on Dubair Khwar hydelpower project and washed away a village having 40 houses. Three Chinese engineers and two men each from FC and Wapda were killed, while 70 were feared dead in the incident.

In Karak, three people died and five others were injured due to collapse of roofs in various parts of the district.

Eyewitnesses told The News that Ajab Noor of Kandokhel died when the roof of his room collapsed at night while two persons including a minor died due to a similar incident in Ghunda Shamshaki area of the district. They were identified as Israr and his nephew Shahid.

Three women and two men were seriously injured in two more incidents of roof collapse. Supply of gas from Gurguri to DI Khan, Lakki Marwat, Tank, Bannu and Bhaker remained suspended. Khushal Garh Bride was also closed for all kind of traffic and those visiting Islamabad would have to use Peshawar route.

According to dispatches, hundreds of houses were destroyed in Peshawar, Kohat, Shangla, Kohistan, Battagram, Charsadda, Mohmand Agency, Dir, Swat, Nowshera, Karak, Lakki Marwat, Mansehra, Tank and DI Khan. While property losses are estimated in billions.

Sources said Pabbi tehsil, Nowshera Kalan, Cantonment Area, Pashtoon Garhi, Akbarpura Wanda, Mohib Banda and some other areas were inundated.

Online adds: At least 12 passengers were killed and five others sustained injuries when a passenger bus fell into a ravine in Rawalakot due to heavy rains on Thursday. According to media reports, the passenger bus was on its way to Rawalpindi from Rawalakot when it fell into deep ravine.

APP adds: The provincial government of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Thursday pronounced emergency following large scale devastation and losses of lives due to rain and flash floods in the province.

The announcement in this regard was made by the Provincial Minister for Information, Mian Iftikhar Hussein while briefing media about rain, flood situation and relief activities launched for the affected people in the province.

Meanwhile, all available troops of Army in respective areas have been fully mobilized since Wednesday to carry out rescue and relief activities in concert with civil administration, says a press release issued here on Thursday.

Troops busy in relief operation are equipped with life jackets, motorboats, heavy rafts to shift families, their luggage, cattle and other belongings. Army boats are being used to rescue the stranded people to safer places. Army engineers are busy in opening the roads and making the diversions to facilitate the flow of traffic at flood inundated roads round the clock.

Army teams are working at Charsadda, Peshawar, Nowshera, Mansehra, Swat, Tank, Lakki Marwat districts, Khyber Agency of Fata. Through hectic efforts, the Army has been able to rescue more than 1500 people at Munda Gucha area of Mansehra, Tank, Tedi Bazar, Shangi and Kota Khusta, Khyber Agency, Ningolai, Charbagh, Nall, Daroshkhela, Koray and Dad Pind area of Swat.

While on the other hand, one person was died and property worth millions of rupees has been destroyed as monsoon rains played havoc in some parts of Balochistan during the last 24 hours. According to the Local Met officials, torrential rains lashed various areas including Sibi, Zhob, Sherani, Loralai, Qila Saifullah and other areas causing losses of property.

In Bhag area of district Kachhi, floods busted Dam Jalal Khan which inundated some eight villages including Shakarabad, Jarrya Khan, Mahboobabad, Abdul Rehman Arrain Kot, Izatpur and others and damaged dozens of houses.

---------- Post added at 05:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 AM ----------

Severe rains threaten three provinces, warnings issued

Friday, July 30, 2010

By Ansar Abbasi

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Flood Commission and the Met office have warned the authorities that the next 24 hours are critical and if the ongoing spell of rains continues, innumerable villages in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, the Punjab and Sindh would be inundated because of possible spillover of rivers and tributaries and many bridges would be at risk.

“We have issued necessary warnings to all and sundry,” Chairman Federal Flood Commission Zarar Aslam told The News here on Thursday, adding that the country’s reservoirs, including Mangla and Tarbela Dams, were almost full, nearly all the rivers and tributaries had medium-to-high floods whereas the soil was saturated, thus leaving the situation vulnerable for floods if the shower did not see a break.

DG Met Office Dr Qamaruz Zaman, when contacted, was equally concerned and warned that if the outflows of Tarbela, Mangla and River Chenab synchronised, it would play havoc in the Punjab and Sindh after the KP had already received record rains and inundations.

Dr Qamaruz Zaman said that the warning regarding the Mangla Dam had already been issued because of the extremely high flood. He said that the inflow and outflow in the Mangla Dam, which is full and has no more storage capacity for additional water, has already reached 250,000 cusecs feet and was expected to touch 300,000-350,000 cusecs feet. He said that because of the Mangla discharge downstream, River Jehlum would spill over and cause flood in the low-lying areas.

Like Mangla, he said, the inflow and outflow in Tarbela had reached 300,000 cusecs feet whereas the Chenab too had 250,000 cusecs feet floodwater. For Sindh, which would too face floods in the low-lying areas as the flood water reaches there, the DG Met office feared a havoc like situation if the outflows of Mangla, Tarbela and Chenab synchronised.

Dr Qamaruz Zaman said that the KP received a record rainfall and the situation of flood in its rivers was still high because of which the province was experiencing an unprecedented inundation. After the next 24 hours, he said, if the rain spell weakened, then the river situation all over Pakistan would not worsen.

The Chairman Federal Flood Commission, Zarar Aslam, said that 300 villages had already been affected in the KP and the Punjab while more than 50 people were dead in the KP alone. The FFC chief said that Mangla and Tarbela were almost full and, therefore, were not in a position to store more water in these reservoirs.

He said that the next 24 hours were critical and if the present spell of rains did not weaken, things could go bad. He said that the KP rivers/tributaries like Swat, Kabul, Pamjkora and Badni Nullah were in high floods.

 

[sparklingway]

The Role Of Class In Covering National Tragedies, Or Why Aren't The Floods In KP Getting More Attention?​

I actually really pity copy editors and editors in general at newspapers and other media organizations in places like Pakistan. The problem is that there is too much news every day, in a bad way.

I spent six years of my childhood in Singapore, and I remember that each murder there -- if I recall correctly, there used to be between five and ten every year -- was huge news. Front page stuff. Maybe my memory is playing tricks on me, but that's certainly the way I remember it. And I bet if the electricity goes in Sweden, or there is a flash flood in Korea, or a terrorist attack in Australia, it would occupy the front pages of their newspapers and the front ends of their news programs on TV for many, many days.

The problem in Pakistan, in many respects, is that there is too much bad news. There's something crappy happening every day, and people who would lead normal lives in other countries end up dying or losing their families here because of political violence or crazy bus drivers on highways or robberies gone wrong or whatever. All this is to say I appreciate greatly the difficulties in allocating newspaper inches to various episodes of tragedy. Really, I get it.

That said...

I find the reaction the air plane crash yesterday versus the floods in KP fascinating. When the plane crash happened, it was all over the news channels and newspapers, taking up all the space available. But the floods are as serious, if not more so, than the air crash. As many people have died, and there has been significantly more damage to property and crops and so on.

But here's the thing. It hasn't really engendered the same level of reaction from our press and blogosphere/twitterverse. While it is the first item on the websites of both The News...

...and the Express Tribune...

...the floods enjoy less prominence in the Daily Times...

...and really, really inadqeaute prominence by Dawn. In fact, I had to zoom out 5 times to get the headline on the floods in one window.

Getting to the point of the post, I would argue that class really matters here. The type of person who is likely to die in an Air Blue flight, socio-economically speaking, is very different from the type of person who loses their family in flooding in KP. I'm sorry, but that's just the truth, and anyone pretending otherwise is just being silly.

I would further submit that that distinction matters when deciding upon the coverage given to this. Ask yourselves this: do you really think Dawn would've buried this story that low down if the floods took place in Karachi in Gulshan or Nazimabad, or God forbid, Defence or Clifton or KDA? (Assume that Karachi had a river running through it). For the types of people who read (and work for) English newspapers, a plane crash simply resonates more than a flood in a relatively sparely populated province, and that seriously affects how the balance is struck between the two tragedies in terms of coverage. Mind you, I'm not arguing it's a conscious decision -- I'm just saying that the ability to feel empathy for a certain type of victim really matters, even if it's under the surface of our cognitive faculties.

Two caveats. One, there's a lot that goes into deciding which stories get prominence, and I am not some media studies expert that I can pretend to know all those factors. Frankly, there's something about a plane crash that makes it very, very newsworthy, irrespective of where it happens in the world. I don't know what it is about plane crashes, but they bring a sense of gloom and dismay and sadness that few other comprable (in terms of casualties) incidents do. So I can partly understand why the air crash would beat the floods, I just don't understand how it can beat it so easily without also accounting for the class element.

Two, I don't want to be seen as picking on Dawn here. Frankly, the becharas are the only reliable, trustworhy, calm, sedate, relatively rational newspaper in Pakistan. They don't plagiarize stories (all three of the other major English dailies do so, and at least two -- the Daily Times and The News -- do it regularly). They don't employ 20- and 21-year old college students as op-ed writers (ahem, Daily Times and ExTrib). They don't simply make **** up (ahem, The News). They don't put nuclear-secret sellers on their op-ed page (ahem, The News). They don't put xenophobic, nutty right-wing conspiracy theorists on their op-ed page either (ahem, The News). You get the picture -- they're actually worthy of respect from sane, rational people, which is a commodity at a serious premium in Pakistan's media industry.

But it is interesting how this is playing out. I can't speak to the electronic media, because after the events of yesterday, I think I need a break from those guys for a while, so I don't know if they're giving it less, as much, or more prominence than the crash. I can definitely speak to the blogosphere, and it's most assuredly been less of a story there.

Just something to think about, I guess.

The role of class in covering national tragedies, or why aren't the floods in KP getting more attention? | Asian Correspondent

 

[sparklingway]

Extending Ahsan's argument, I'd like to add that even today, the flood are not that big of a news since there is not much "analysis" (read conspiracy theories) that the media moguls can generate. While full page reports have been dedicated to the plane crash, the flood reports are on the front page but do not receive the same level of "analysis" that the plane crash does. I know it seems insensitive to compare the effects and the coverage of horrific and downright terrible events, but the reality is that the urban-rural divide, the socio-economic divide and the provincial divide play a big, big factor in coverage besides the media value attached to events. It can only take a nation as crippled with problems as ours to be discussing what kind of coverage (or lack thereof) was received by two different disasters (and this saddens me as well).

The most horrific thing is that none of the newspapers could even give an Editorial importance to the floods that seem to have killed nearly 150 by now (ignoring the unknown figures from Rajanpur).

 

[sparklingway]

KP devastated by severe flood​

Dawn Report
Friday, 30 Jul, 2010

Local residents evacuate in a flood-hit area of Nowshera.– AFP ​

PESHAWAR: Torrential rains and flash floods continued to devastate life and property in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and tribal areas on Thursday, killing dozens of people.

The death toll since Wednesday has risen to 113. More than 400,000 people have been affected.

The provincial government has declared a state of emergency and asked people living along the banks of the Swat and Kabul rivers and their tributaries in Peshawar and Charsadda districts to move to other areas.

Lack of resources and planning has put the lives of thousands of people at risk in Peshawar and Charsadda where the Kabul and Swat rivers converge.

The district administration appeared to be helpless in moving the stranded people to safe places.

Eighteen people were killed in Kohat, another 18 in Dera Ismail Khan, nine in Charsadda, seven in Mohmand Agency, two in Abbottabad and two in Karak and Tank. Over 1,000 houses were damaged in D.I. Khan, Tank and the adjacent Frontier Region. Water level at Chashma Barrage is also rising.

A large number of people have taken shelter in schools and mosques in Peshawar and are in dire need of clothes, food and water.

Flood water has inundated thousands of houses in the provincial capital. With no sign of any rescue and relief work, people are seething in anger.

“Around 70 families, mostly women and children, have taken shelter in the Government High School No 1 in Peshawar. They left their homes empty-handed when gushing flood water inundated their localities on Charssada Road,” said Amjid Khan, a social worker.

Traffic on the Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway and on parts of the GT Road has been suspended.

Inter-Services Public Relations said that troops had been carrying out rescue and relief activities since Wednesday.

The situation in Malakand division was even more chaotic. Flash floods caused widespread devastations in Swat, washing away houses, bridges, hospitals, roads and communication networks.

Swat river was in high flood and the outflow at Munda Headwork was over 300,000 cusecs, according to the flood warning centre.

Officials in Swat could not be contacted because telephone lines have stopped functioning. Flood water has entered the Mingora bazaar.

Army was called in for evacuation work in Peshawar, Charsadda, Swat and other flood-hit areas.

Provincial Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain appealed to the federal government, international community and philanthropists to come forward and help the marooned people.

Addressing a press conference, he said the provincial government had released funds to districts and 50 boats were being brought by a C-130 aircraft from Karachi. The boats will reach Peshawar by Friday evening.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly session has been postponed for an indefinite period. Senior Minister Bashir Ahmad Bilour informed the house that 106 people had been killed across the province.

The Provincial Disaster Management Authority said that 200 Chinese nationals were stranded in Dobair valley of Kohistan district. Flood swept away two camps of a Chinese company in the area.

Witnesses said that Swat was in complete chaos. Amir Muhammad Khan, a social worker, told Dawn from Bahrian that flood had swept away a large number of shops, houses and hotels in the town and caused severe damage to the infrastructure.

People were living in the open and needed immediate evacuation and relief, he said. A large number of people were marooned in flooded localities because the flood water has submerged the main road between Bahrian and Mingora.

Mr Khan said the road between Madian and Bahrian had been severely damaged. People have taken shelter in mosques. Household goods and appliances have been washed away.

About 102 workers and security guards working at an irrigation project in Malakand have been stranded since Wednesday. Parts of Batkhela bazaar are under water.

About 47 people are reported to have been missing in Shangla district. Five bodies were found on Thursday.

Officials said that floods had washed away 297 houses, 46 bridges, five mosques and four schools and some basic health units and damaged telecommunication network, electricity lines, link roads and crops.

Two residential colonies comprising 53 houses were destroyed in Alpuri, the district headquarters of Shangla.

 

[fawwaxs]

PESHAWAR: Torrential rains and flash floods continued to devastate life and property in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and tribal areas on Thursday, killing dozens of people.

The death toll since Wednesday has risen to 113. More than 400,000 people have been affected.

The provincial government has declared a state of emergency and asked people living along the banks of the Swat and Kabul rivers and their tributaries in Peshawar and Charsadda districts to move to other areas.

Lack of resources and planning has put the lives of thousands of people at risk in Peshawar and Charsadda where the Kabul and Swat rivers converge.

The district administration appeared to be helpless in moving the stranded people to safe places.

Eighteen people were killed in Kohat, another 18 in Dera Ismail Khan, nine in Charsadda, seven in Mohmand Agency, two in Abbottabad and two in Karak and Tank. Over 1,000 houses were damaged in D.I. Khan, Tank and the adjacent Frontier Region. Water level at Chashma Barrage is also rising.

A large number of people have taken shelter in schools and mosques in Peshawar and are in dire need of clothes, food and water.

Flood water has inundated thousands of houses in the provincial capital. With no sign of any rescue and relief work, people are seething in anger.

“Around 70 families, mostly women and children, have taken shelter in the Government High School No 1 in Peshawar. They left their homes empty-handed when gushing flood water inundated their localities on Charssada Road,” said Amjid Khan, a social worker.

Traffic on the Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway and on parts of the GT Road has been suspended.

Inter-Services Public Relations said that troops had been carrying out rescue and relief activities since Wednesday.

The situation in Malakand division was even more chaotic. Flash floods caused widespread devastations in Swat, washing away houses, bridges, hospitals, roads and communication networks.

Swat river was in high flood and the outflow at Munda Headwork was over 300,000 cusecs, according to the flood warning centre.

Officials in Swat could not be contacted because telephone lines have stopped functioning. Flood water has entered the Mingora bazaar.

Army was called in for evacuation work in Peshawar, Charsadda, Swat and other flood-hit areas.

Provincial Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain appealed to the federal government, international community and philanthropists to come forward and help the marooned people.

Addressing a press conference, he said the provincial government had released funds to districts and 50 boats were being brought by a C-130 aircraft from Karachi. The boats will reach Peshawar by Friday evening.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly session has been postponed for an indefinite period. Senior Minister Bashir Ahmad Bilour informed the house that 106 people had been killed across the province.

The Provincial Disaster Management Authority said that 200 Chinese nationals were stranded in Dobair valley of Kohistan district. Flood swept away two camps of a Chinese company in the area.

Witnesses said that Swat was in complete chaos. Amir Muhammad Khan, a social worker, told Dawn from Bahrian that flood had swept away a large number of shops, houses and hotels in the town and caused severe damage to the infrastructure.

People were living in the open and needed immediate evacuation and relief, he said. A large number of people were marooned in flooded localities because the flood water has submerged the main road between Bahrian and Mingora.

Mr Khan said the road between Madian and Bahrian had been severely damaged. People have taken shelter in mosques. Household goods and appliances have been washed away.

About 102 workers and security guards working at an irrigation project in Malakand have been stranded since Wednesday. Parts of Batkhela bazaar are under water.

About 47 people are reported to have been missing in Shangla district. Five bodies were found on Thursday.

Officials said that floods had washed away 297 houses, 46 bridges, five mosques and four schools and some basic health units and damaged telecommunication network, electricity lines, link roads and crops.

Two residential colonies comprising 53 houses were destroyed in Alpuri, the district headquarters of Shangla.

 

[fawwaxs]

PESHAWAR: The destruction being brought about by devastating floods in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and in Southern Areas is still afoot as hundreds of people have lost their lives and thousands other have been rendered homeless.

Scores of people are missing, many houses, link and main bridges, link roads, tributaries have been either completely washed away by floodwater due to spillover from rivers and incessant spate of rains or have been too inundated for a human life to survive.

The biggest human catastrophe in last three decades has claimed lives of over 250 innocent people at isolated places in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during three-day long showers.

Met office said over 250 mm rain has been recorded so far, forecasting that the worst part was looming ahead.

Chief Minister House in Gilgit-Baltistan has been inundated due to killing floodwater, forcing CM to vacate CM House, who has taken refuge in a local hotel whereas thousands of people have been caught trapped in Nowshera district after River Kabul was seen in high-floods.

Unprecedented spree of incessant heavy downpours is continued in Gilgit-Baltistan, rendering adjoining areas cutoff with other parts of country.

14 jawans of rangers are trapped in floodwater in Baseen since last night, which has prompted authorities to carry out rescue operation for their safe and sound release.

The situation has turned worst of all times as the floods and rains have wreaked havoc up to the extent of biggest natural disaster and worst human calamity in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Spillover from River Swat has entered into River Kabul at Nowshera place resulting in submerging cantonment and other areas in water.

Thousands of people, being trapped in floodwater, are waiting for help from government whereas District Headquarter Hospital was also seen flooded by many feet.

At least 230 people have been reportedly killed while scores others have gone missing amid the deadliest spree of incidents occurred once in last three decades, wreaked by heavy downpours and floodwater all across Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa province, media reports and television footages reported Friday morning.

Many link bridges have been washed away, rendering many areas cutoff from other parts of cities and districts and leaving scores of people trapped at isolated places.

Heavy showers have inflicted havoc, devastation in Swat and Shangla districts as furious floodwater, overflowing from River Swat, has played massive destruction in residential areas.

Meanwhile, as many as 16 people have been killed by land sliding in Alandar locality in Shangla district.

In Shangla district alone, more than 90 people have been killed in separate incidents as a result of two-day long spate of the torrential rains.

25 people have been wiped out by floodwater in Swat alone while Kabal, Matta, Bari Kot, Charbagh, Khwaza Khela, Behrin and Babuzai areas are no longer connected with other parts of country owing to destruction of link bridges.

Floodwater has demolished numerous shops and houses in Kalam whereas land sliding, in Surkhel Balabanda locality of Batgram, has killed three brothers and sisters.

A central bridge, a main road and dozens of houses have been inundated by floodwater near Thakot and Oralai due to flesh flood in River Indus.

On second consecutive day, Sahrah-e-Kaghan remained closed for traffic by dint of incessant spree of cruel downpours and back-to-back incidents of land sliding, trapping thousands of tourists in Shogran, Kaghan and Naran districts.

Hundreds of houses have been inundated by floodwater at Kasar place in Kohistan district while the residents of over 10 houses have reportedly gone missing as a result of devastating floods.

The link bridge between Palis and Patan districts has been submerged in floodwater. River Kanhar has been feared to be in high-floods soon at Mansehra District, prompting authorities to evict people from areas settled along riverside.

Civil Hospital, police station and main bazaar have been evacuated in view of anticipated floods in Balakot District.

12 dead bodies have been pulled out from rubble after the Jurma Bridge in Kohat Division collapsed following the deadliest floods in the history.

Four people have been drowned in floodwater in Nowsehra District while over 25 people are still missing.

Doctors, paramedical staff and patients trapped in District Headquarter Hospital have climbed on rooftop after floodwater has inundated hospital up to many feet.

A total of 780 houses, 34 school buildings, 6 main bridges, 28 link bridges, 11 mosques and thousands acres land, meant for irrigation, have been washed away by floodwater at isolated places in Upper Dir.

At least 11 persons including six children have been trampled to death following the collapse of house in Lower Dir while another 21 persons have been lashed out by floodwater.

Nearly 9 persons died and 42 others were injured after floodwater, flowing out from River Swat and Jendi, played annihilation in Charsadda District.

Several villages and the legislative assembly building have been flooded after River Gilgit was seen in high-flood.

Five children have drowned in floodwater in Bannu District while over 40 houses have collapsed in Tehsil Bara in Khyber Agency.

 

[GFM_EhsanUlHaq]

The news is tragic and condition of areas are growning more and more severe...

I recommend to the High command of Pakistan army to raise a permanent army division which will do only operations regarding disastors like flood and earth quakes etc......


May Allah bless us with His blessing and this condition ends quickly.

 

[into the wild]

first the sad plane crash and now this flood, imagine how lucky is zardari and co to escape both these senarios, plane should have crashed on the parliment or president house instead of MH, and the flood should have flushed the zardari and CO hell out of islamabad!!!, innocents die, corrupts survive!!

sad news indeed rip to the dead, and hope their suffering eases with the aid!!

 

[RescueRanger]

The news is tragic and condition of areas are growning more and more severe...

I recommend to the High command of Pakistan army to raise a permanent army division which will do only operations regarding disastors like flood and earth quakes etc......


May Allah bless us with His blessing and this condition ends quickly.

Pakistan already has a National Disaster Management Authority, beneath which you have DMAs at the Provincial and District level.

Web Link: NDMA Pakistan

 

[sparklingway]

Pakistan already has a National Disaster Management Authority, beneath which you have DMAs at the Provincial and District level.

Web Link: NDMA Pakistan

And we can lament on the fact the they're nearly non-existent at the district level.

It was however disappointing to read the stupid rants in the Letters to Editors today where people complained about lack of emergency response at the crash site. In their sheer frustration over the entire state structure, they perhaps forgot to see that the response was adequate as far as our standards are concerned, especially considering the terrain and the weather.

 

[RescueRanger]

And we can lament on the fact the they're nearly non-existent at the district level.

It was however disappointing to read the stupid rants in the Letters to Editors today where people complained about lack of emergency response at the crash site. In their sheer frustration over the entire state structure, they perhaps forgot to see that the response was adequate as far as our standards are concerned, especially considering the terrain and the weather.

Totally, you can blame the Former generals hired to fill seats in this prestigious organisation. All the senior posts are either ex-army or if you excuse the term "old farts" who should be left out to pasture.

I personally hate this orginisation, but in their defence they did make available 1 Rescue Helicopter

That justifies their existence and clear incompetence apparently. It was the same in Ghakar Plaza, they have a International level USAR team sitting in Islamabad and could not be deployed to Rawalpindi to help us because "NDMA" should receive a written request from the DCO of Rawalpindi "facepalm".

What's worse is that the present leadership of NDMA only wishes to train the military and government forces, whereas we have been asking to train civilians in first aid, rescue etc for many years.

If people have basic skills, a paper issued by FEMA USA, stated that citizens with basic skills can be mobilised and self sufficient in disasters for upto 72 hours. (That is more than enough to allow the state machinery to come into play).

Furthermore in large scale incidents such a force can be used to provide valuable "surge" capacity to emergency services. But did Gen. Nadeem or Maj Akram listen... Did they heck!#

And guess who the real first responders are in Pakistan? The Civilians.

 

[su-47]

Extending Ahsan's argument, I'd like to add that even today, the flood are not that big of a news since there is not much "analysis" (read conspiracy theories) that the media moguls can generate. While full page reports have been dedicated to the plane crash, the flood reports are on the front page but do not receive the same level of "analysis" that the plane crash does. I know it seems insensitive to compare the effects and the coverage of horrific and downright terrible events, but the reality is that the urban-rural divide, the socio-economic divide and the provincial divide play a big, big factor in coverage besides the media value attached to events. It can only take a nation as crippled with problems as ours to be discussing what kind of coverage (or lack thereof) was received by two different disasters (and this saddens me as well).

The most horrific thing is that none of the newspapers could even give an Editorial importance to the floods that seem to have killed nearly 150 by now (ignoring the unknown figures from Rajanpur).

bhai, the media exists for one purpose, and that is to sell itself. so they look for sensationalism more than anything. a natural disaster wont have that sensationalism, since its not really anyone's fault. if u see the death toll in natural disasters are often nothing more than a statistic, with almost no emotion attached to it.

On the other hand, a terrorist attack, a plane crash, murder etc carry a lot more sensationalism and will be reported in more detail. if u notice, victims of terrorist attacks recieve so much sympathy from the media, in terms of the style of reporting, but doesn't a flood victim deserev the same sympathy? but i have noticed that they just dont get it.

And anything affecting the upper classes of society will always carry more weight, since most of the audience are interested in that more than what affects the poor.

its a sad reality of the world we live in. media is supposed to be unemotional, but it seems they can be quite unfair as well.

 

[sparklingway]

It would be somewhat wrong to label the response to this situation as somewhat lax. The floods weren't like a slow progress, these were really flash floods and the Federal Flood Commission had issued no warning prior to the earliest wave which swept complete villages.

The urban-rural divide exposes the differences as well. People across Leh were evacuated when the Flood Forecast and Warning System installed across Pindi/Isb (thanks to JICA) worked.

However, the situation in Rajanpur could have been addressed in a much better fashion. The south punjab area did not witness a flash flood rather the flood warnings had been issued a day earlier.

In the end, floods are calamities beyond our control and flash floods cannot be responded to in any great way. The response that follows after the initial destruction can and should be improved. Even if District DMAs aren't up and running, the lazy guys at Civil Defence should be able to address the situation firmly, appropriately and in a timely fashion.

Too much bad things going on this week.

 

[fawwaxs]

Floods kill at least 313 in KP, AJK

The death toll in three days of flooding in Pakistan reached at least 313 on Friday, rescue and government officials said, as rains bloated rivers, submerged villages, and triggered landslides.