The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has declared a rain emergency in several districts of the province with immediate effect till August 30 after the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) warned of “high to very high floods” in the Swat River.
Key developments:
- Emergency declared in several KP districts till Aug 30 in view of floods
- Bridges, schools and hotels swept away by floods in Swat, neighbouring areas
- Government and private schools in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa closed until further notice
- PTI chairman Imran Khan visits flood-affected areas in Dera Ismail Khan and Tank
- Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announces Rs15 billion grant for Sindh
- Balochistan loses communication with rest of the country after overnight rains
The decision was taken after flash floods wreaked havoc in Mardan, Swat, Shangla, Mingora, Kohistan and other areas. Videos circulating on social media show hotels, link roads, suspension bridges, houses, hospitals, schools, mini power stations, and water mills being completely washed away as residents scramble to find refuge.
In a notification issued on Friday, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, KP’s Provincial Emergency Operations Centre said that water flows in River Swat at Khawazakhela point and its tributaries/nullahs had reached high to very high flood levels — 227,899 cusecs — which “may result in a dangerous situation for communities living nearby”.
It has directed the deputy commissioners of Swat, Lower Dir, Malakand, Mohmand, Charsadda, Mardan, Nowshera and Peshawar to immediately identify vulnerable points and communities at risk to devise mitigation and safety measures.
“Maintain enhanced alert level and monitor the developing situation to reduce reaction and response times,” the centre said, calling for the sensitisation of people living on the banks of the rivers about the increase in water flows.
“Make announcements for timely evacuation of the at-risk population from low-lying/flood-prone areas as per evacuation plans,” it added.
The PDMA also instructed authorities to evacuate cattle from areas at risk of flooding, as well as restrict vehicle movement there.
Earlier today, at least three people drowned in the River Indus near the Bisham area of Shangla. According to the locality’s station house officer, Abbas Khan, two other men in the Shang area were also swept away during the floods.
Separately, a Shangla health department official, Ijaz Ahmad, told Dawn.com that a rural health centre in the Karora area had been washed away by the floods in the Kana river.
Shamsul Hadi, a resident, said that three houses and a mosque were swept away in the floods, while roads and bridges leading to the Ranolia and Dubair areas had been completely destroyed.
In Shangla, the Alpuri-Puran and Karora-Kana roads also suffered several damages at several points, creating a sense of panic among the residents as they were restricted to their houses.
All government and private schools in the area have also been closed until further notice.
In a statement today, the Frontier Works Organisation said that the Karakoram Highway was swept away by floods at Zaidkarh Dassua and was blocked at several points due to landslides.
The deputy commissioner of Swat, Junaid Khan, told Dawn.com that the provincial government has begun rescue operations across the province and was trying to reach out to stranded people.
Imran, KP CM visit DI Khan, Tank
Later in the day, PTI chief Imran Khan and KP Chief Minister Mahmood Khan arrived in Dera Ismail Khan and Tank to meet people affected by floods in the two districts in the wake of rain-induced flooding.
Talking to media persons at a relief camp in Dera Ismail Khan, the former prime minister said that damage caused by floods was being assessed by the government. “The rains this year caused damage by tenfolds as compared to floods in 2010.”
Imran emphasised the construction of small and large dams across the country, saying that was the only solution to flooding. “By constructing dams we can not only avoid flood damage but also make rainwater a valuable asset,” he added.
The PTI chief also met people affected by the floods in the area.
PM Shehbaz announces Rs15bn grant for Sindh
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Sindh earlier today to overview the rescue and relief operations in the province and announced an Rs15 billion grant for flood affectees.
He said the aid would help the Sindh government carry out relief and rehabilitation activities.
In a media talk, he announced that every rain-affected household in the province would be given Rs24,000 under the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP). “I have instructed it to start the disbursement (of money) from today only.”
The prime minister said that Rs28 billion will be distributed among the victims, which has already been handed over to BISP. “This matter does not end here, as the rains continue, this amount will increase. The federal govt is prepared for it despite the economic situation, we are doing all this for you.”
He also said that Energy Minister Khurram Dastagir would stay in the province until all the grid stations were made operational again. “He will assist the Sindh government and give me regular updates.”
Furthermore, PM Shehbaz promised that the coalition government would make collective efforts to alleviate the sufferings of the flood victims, adding that it would “leave no stone unturned” to facilitate the people who had faced unprecedented loss in the wake of floods.
He also regretted the loss of 900 lives lost during floods in the last few months.
During his visit today, the premier met the flood affectees, accompanied by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah. He was also briefed by the chief secretary of Sindh and officials of the NDMA on the rescue operations.
Communication links in Balochistan snapped
Separately, Balochistan, already battered by flash floods, lost communication with the rest of the country after overnight rains. The air, road and rail networks in Balochistan are already suspended.
“Due to torrential rains and flash floods in Balochistan optical fibre cable, voice and data services have been impacted in Quetta and rest of the main cities of the province,” the Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA) said on Twitter.
Efforts are being made to resolve this unprecedented situation, it added.
A major railway bridge washed away between Kolpur and Mach in Bolan Pass, cutting off Quetta, the capital of southwestern Balochistan, from the rest of the country for an indefinite period, officials said.
All four highways linking Balochistan with other provinces were blocked because of damaged bridges and landslides.
So far, more than 235 people were killed in the province and hundreds of thousands lost their homes, the authorities said.
Record-breaking rain
According to a Dawn report today, Sindh and Balochistan are witnessing the heaviest rainfall this year since 1961, as the two provinces recorded until Thursday 522 and 469 per cent, more than the normal downpour this year, respectively.
“Sindh has received 680.5 millimetres of rain since July when the monsoon season actually began,” said a Met official.
“As per calculated and defined standards, Sindh normally gets 109.5mm rains in the monsoon season. So it’s 522pc higher than normal. Similarly, Balochistan receives 50mm of rain on average every monsoon, but it has so far recorded 284mm — 469pc higher. The country has overall witnessed 207 times higher rainfall so far this monsoon and the season is going to last till September-end.”
In other parts of the country also, the situation didn’t look so different this year. Gilgit-Baltistan, according to the Met Office data, has so far received 50.3mm rain in two months, which is 99pc above normal and Punjab 349mm, exactly 90pc higher than its normal downpour in monsoon. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa witnessed 31pc above normal rain this monsoon, where so far 257.4mm rains have been recorded.
Additional information from Reuters