ISLAMABAD: Doznes of people have been killed and many injured in several parts of Pakistan due to recent unusual rains in the country.
According to the officials, the widespread rains in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province claimed around 21 lives. The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) data showed that 32 people were wounded in various incidents in the province. It added that around 330 homes were damaged due to the heavy rains in Northwest Pakistan.
The authorities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa said that 21 people including nine males, nine children, and three females were killed during the four days of rains.
The PDMA maintained that 330 houses were damaged including 53 completely damaged homes and around 277 partially in Dir Upper and Lower, Khyber, Swat, Bajaur, Chitral Lower, Mansehra, Shangla, Malakand, Karak, Mohmand, Mardan, Tank, Charsadda, Peshawar, Hangu, Bunner, Bannu, North Waziristan, Kohat, Orakzai and Battagram.
PDMA claimed that it also provided relief goods to the victims of affected districts of Peshawar, Swat, and Mohmand. A spokesperson of the PDMA said that PDMA had also dispatched around 200 tents for the victims of Lower Chitral.
On the other hand, authorities said that government and private schools have been closed for three days in lower Chitral due to fears of floods following heavy rains in the area.
Pakistan has been experiencing an increase in extreme weather events due to challenge of climate change. In 2022, several areas of the South Asian nation were completely submerged by heavy flooding. More than 1,700 people were killed in the unprecedent floods while thousands were injured. Millions of people were forces to leave their homes because of floods in 2022. Authorities in Pakistan said that the country is facing the challenge of climate change and urged the world to help the country to deal this issue.
Commenting over the recent heavy rains and its impacts on regions particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, journalist Sajjad Khan said that the government should introduce a mechanism and also devise a strategy for international cooperation to address the negative impacts of extreme weather events in the country. He said that the government should devise a flood-risk management system to address this issue.
He said that there is need awareness campaign regarding impact of climate change. He said that the government should allocate more and more funds to address the issue of climate change. Authorities in Pakistan said that twenty people were killed by lightning in recent week in Punjab. Officials said that around 8 people were killed in Balochistan province. Authorities in the province have also announced to close the schools in Balochistan due to recent rains.
