PESHAWAR/ DAGGAR/MANSEHRA/ BATTAGRAM: At least 300 people lost their lives, dozens were injured and many remain missing after flash floods—triggered by powerful cloudbursts—unleashed devastation across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) on Friday.
The Pir Baba area in Buner district was the hardest hit, where a cloudburst caused flooding that swept away several houses. “Rescue operations are underway in Buner, Swat, Bajaur, Battagram, and other flood-affected areas,” said Malakand Commissioner Abid Khan Wazir. “So far, 90 people have died in Buner, 22 in Bajaur, 17 in Swat, and 12 in Shangla due to floods and rain-related incidents,” he added. Later, sources said over 200 bodies were recovered in Buner alone.
Hundreds of houses, shops, and bridges have been damaged in the Malakand division, with urban flooding causing most of the destruction in Swat. According to Rescue 1122, over 165 fatalities have been reported, with dozens more injured. Rescue efforts are ongoing in Buner, Bajaur, Swat, Shangla, and other regions to locate the missing and assist the stranded.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) reported that 35 houses were damaged in various districts, with 28 partially damaged and 7 destroyed in Bajaur, Swat, Buner, Torghar, Upper Dir, Lower Dir, Mansehra, Shangla, Battagram, and Upper Chitral. In Salarzai tehsil of Bajaur, 21 people, including women and children, were killed and five were injured when lightning struck early Friday. “Nineteen bodies have been recovered so far, while the search for two more continues,” said an official.
According to Rescue 1122 and Bajaur Deputy Commissioner Shahid Ali, the disaster hit Jabrai village around midnight, destroying four houses. Residents initially led the rescue efforts, later joined by official rescue teams. However, operations were hampered by strong currents, high water levels and blocked access routes due to landslides.
A Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government Mi-17 helicopter carrying relief supplies to Bajaur tragically crashed in Mohmand district on Friday due to severe weather conditions, killing two pilots and three crew members. The crash occurred in the Chenagai Banda area of Mohmand. According to preliminary reports, the helicopter lost contact with air traffic control amid poor visibility before going down.
“A rescue operation was launched immediately,” said a spokesperson for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police. “Deputy Commissioner Mohmand Yasir Hassan and District Police Officer Ikramullah Khan personally oversaw the efforts.”
Teams from the KP Police, Rescue 1122 and the Quick Response Force promptly reached the crash site and took part in the recovery operations. The spokesperson confirmed that the bodies of the martyred personnel were being transported with full honour. The helicopter was en route to deliver essential relief supplies to flood-affected areas in Bajaur as part of the provincial government’s ongoing emergency response.
In Mansehra, 32 people died, 27 of them in a single cloudburst incident in Dehri Haleem village. “Twenty-seven people, including women and children, have either been confirmed dead or are still missing,” said District Police Officer Shafiullah Khan Gandapur. “We have recovered 16 bodies from the Shamlai area of Battagram, and search operations are ongoing.” In Battagram, Assistant Commissioner Saleem Khan reported that five houses in Neel Band village were destroyed after a lightning strike triggered severe flooding. In Shamlai Mandrowali, 16 bodies were recovered from a stream, while rescue operations are still underway.
Meanwhile, in Kaghan Valley, police rescued seven tourists who had been stranded near Simicsar Lake due to landslides and flash flooding.
In Shamlai Mandrowali, 16 bodies were recovered from a stream, while search and rescue operations remain ongoing.
In the Bisian area of Balakot, two individuals died after their car was swept away by floodwaters. Four others were successfully rescued.
In Garhi Habibullah, a woman and her daughter lost their lives when their house collapsed during heavy rainfall. A second daughter was injured in the incident. Along the Karakoram Highway, a young girl drowned in a swollen nullah. Her body was later recovered by local residents.
In Swat, flash floods claimed 13 lives and left four people missing, according to Rescue 1122. So far, nine bodies have been recovered, while two injured victims were transported to Saidu Sharif Hospital. Rescue teams evacuated 2,071 individuals, including 1,450 residents from inundated localities, 200 schoolchildren, and 100 students from various institutions. Despite being hampered by powerful currents, the operations—carried out by 217 rescue workers— were completed successfully.
In Shangla, the toll was even grimmer. Over 20 people lost their lives, dozens remain missing, and at least 50 were injured in separate flood-related incidents. Among the dead were seven members of a single family, underscoring the tragic scale of the disaster. Flash floods also swept away homes, shops, and at least six vehicles. Roads, bridges, hydropower units and irrigation channels suffered extensive damage, leaving entire communities cut off.
In Lower Dir, five members of one family perished and four others were injured in Soory Pau, Maidan. Floodwaters severely damaged a bridge in Shehzadi Odigram, disrupting access. The Pakistan Army rescued dozens of tourists stranded near Shahi, along the Pak-Afghan border.
In Abbottabad, relentless rainfall claimed the life of a schoolgirl in Galiyat. Ayesha Zulfiqar, a 10th-grade student, was swept away while attempting to cross a stream. Her sister and a teacher accompanying her were injured. Almost all major roads in Abbottabad city were submerged, leading to traffic gridlock and significant property damage.
In Gilgit-Baltistan, the death toll has climbed to 12, with two individuals still missing and five others injured, confirmed government spokesperson Faizullah Faraq. A tourist was killed in a landslide while travelling from Skardu to Gilgit. Gilgit city experienced a 24-hour power outage after flooding damaged key infrastructure. The worst-hit areas include Giyol and Shuker in Baltistan and several parts of Astore.
In Diamer, flooding disrupted life in Thor, Batogah, Thak, Niyat, Bonar, Tangir, Khanbari, and Khanar. Officials in Ghizer district described the situation as the “worst devastation” in recent memory. Activist Arifa Esar urged the federal government to declare a climate emergency in GB.
Meanwhile, landslides have blocked both the Karakoram and Gilgit-Skardu Highways, severely hampering relief efforts. Emergency supplies including tents, food, and medicine have begun to be distributed. Communication lines remain down in many areas, and power outages continue in Chilas as floodwaters entered local power stations. However, Babusar Road, previously blocked by debris, has now been reopened.
In Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), torrential rains took eight lives, injured three and destroyed six bridges. Authorities have ordered schools closed for two days. Power and telecom services were disrupted in the upper regions.
In Neelum Valley, hundreds of tourists remained stranded at Ratti Gali and Patliyan. Authorities assured their safety and announced that rescue operations are scheduled to begin on Saturday.
The GB Finance Department has released Rs93.3 million to deputy commissioners for victim compensation.
In response to the escalating crisis, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has declared Saturday a day of mourning, and imposed a health emergency in the flood-hit districts of Buner, Swat, Bajaur, Mohmand, Abbottabad and Mansehra.
According to the Directorate General of Health Services, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, all district health officers, medical superintendents and directors of medical teaching institutions were instructed to immediately establish flood control rooms in their respective districts and hospitals and to share daily updates regarding disease cases and evolving situation with the relevant authorities.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed all authorities to accelerate rescue operations. Expressing his grief over the loss of life, he prayed for the departed souls and conveyed his condolences to the bereaved families. He also called for immediate and comprehensive medical assistance for the injured.
Meanwhile, PM Shehbaz Sharif held a telephonic conversation with Governor Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Faisal Karim Kundi to express deep sorrow over the loss of lives and property caused by heavy rains and cloudbursts in Buner, Bajaur and other districts of the province.
The PM assured the governor of the federal government’s full support for the province in this difficult time. He said the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) had been directed to take all possible emergency measures to address the situation. “We will not leave the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa alone in this hour of grief,” the PM and governor reaffirmed.
Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir has also issued special instructions regarding the rehabilitation of flood-affected people.
According to security sources, the COAS said that the military deployed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will fully assist in the rehabilitation of flood-affected people. In this regard, additional military troops are also being sent. The Pakistan Army has donated one day’s salary for the rehabilitation of flood-affected people, and also allocated one day’s ration, which amounts to approximately 600 tons, for the relief of flood-affected people in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
He also issued special instructions to the Corps of Engineers to complete bridge repair work promptly and establish temporary bridges where necessary. The Army’s Nine Unit Rescue and Sniffing Dog Unit is also being dispatched for search and rescue operations. Its specialised Urban Search and Rescue Team has also been deployed alongside helicopters and other assets of Army Aviation for search, rescue and supplying relief to the flood-affected people. The Pakistan Army stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the brave people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in every moment of difficulty, said security sources.
In another development, Governor Kundi also received a call from Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, who expressed his condolences over the large-scale human and material losses in the province due to the cloudburst. The Sindh CM offered every possible assistance from the Sindh government to help the affected areas, assuring that the government and people of Sindh stood firmly with the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. “The Sindh government is fully prepared to extend all forms of support to the flood-affected communities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” Murad told Governor Kundi. Also, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) expressed sorrow over the loss of lives. In a statement, the PTI Central Media Department offered condolences, prayers for the victims and solidarity with affected families.
— Anwar Hussain, Essa Khankhel, Shahid Hussain, Syed Kosar Naqvi, and Shabbir Mir also contributed to this report from Shangla, Swat, Lower Dir, Abbottabad, and Gilgit.
