ISLAMABAD: At least 21 people were killed and 56 others injured in separate rain-related incidents across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan during the latest spell of heavy rains, authorities said on Monday.
According to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority, 17 people lost their lives in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since March 25, while 56 others sustained injuries in various incidents triggered by the downpours.
The report said that at least 11 houses suffered partial damage in the province as a result of the ongoing weather conditions, raising concerns about infrastructure vulnerability in affected areas.
In Balochistan, at least four people were killed in rain-related incidents in different areas, officials said. The provincial Provincial Disaster Management Authority confirmed that homes were damaged in two districts — Kech and Qila Abdullah — due to the heavy rains.
Authorities added that the current spell of rains in Balochistan began last Wednesday and has since affected several parts of the province. The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Monday forecast countrywide rainfall, starting on Wednesday.
In an advisory, the PMD said due to a ‘westerly wave’ approaching the “southwestern parts of Balochistan from April 1”, parts of the country will receive “widespread rain-wind/thunderstorm” in the coming days.
It said the westerly wave “is likely to persist” till April 4 (Saturday). Under the influence of the system, the PMD forecast rain-wind/thunderstorm (with isolated heavy falls/hailstorm) in parts of Balochistan from April 2 (evening) to April 4 with “occasional gaps”.
These included Panjgur, Turbat, Kech, Awaran, Makran Coast (Gwadar, Pasni, Ormara), Lasbela, Khuzdar, Kharan, Chaghi, Dalbandin, Kalat, Sibi, Kohlu, Barkhan, Naseerabad, Quetta, Loralai, Ziarat, Chaman, Pishin, Qila Abdullah, Qila Saifullah, Noshki, Harnai, Zhob, Kalat and Mastung.
For Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the PMD said rain, thunderstorms, including snowfall over mountains, were expected in Chitral, Dir, Swat, Kalam, Shangla, Buner, Kohistan, Malakand, Battagram, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Balakot, Haripur, Mardan, Nowshera, Peshawar, Kurram, Swabi, Charsadda, Kohat, Hangu, Karak, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Tank, Bajaur, Mohmand, Khyber, Orakzai, Dera Ismail Khan and Waziristan.
In Punjab, rainfall and thunderstorm (with isolated hailstorm) were expected in Murree, Galiyat, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Attock, Chakwal, Jhelum, Sargodha, Mianwali, Faisalabad, Jhang, Toba Tek Singh, Khushab, Jhang, Noorpurthal, Gujrat, Gujranwala, Hafizabad, Mandi Bahauddin, Sialkot, Narowal, Lahore, Pakpattan, Okara, Kasur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Rajanpur, Bhakkar, Layyah, Multan, Kot Addu, Bahawalpur, Sahiwal, Bahawalnagar, Rahim Yar Khan.
The department also forecast heavy rainfall in Dera Ghazi Khan and its surroundings during the period. In Sindh, rainfall is expected, along with isolated hailstorms, in Karachi, Thatta, Badin, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Dadu, Kashmore, Jacobabad, Larkana, and Shaheed Benazirabad, and Tharparkar from April 2-4.
In Gilgit-Baltistan, the PMD forecast rain along with snowfall over the mountains in Diamir, Astore, Ghizer, Skardu, Hunza, Gilgit, Guanche, and Shigar. In Kashmir, it issued a similar forecast for Neelum valley, Muzaffarabad, Poonch, Hattian, Bagh, Haveli, Sudhanoti, Kotli, Bhimber, and Mirpur.
The department warned of landslides in KP, GB and Kashmir during the forecast period. It also indicated the possibility of flash floods in the northeast of Balochistan, particularly Khuzdar, Lasbela, Awaran, Kharan, Kalat, Mastung, Kohlu, Lasbela, Zhob, Qila Saifulah, Qila Abdullah and Sherani.
Flash floods were also likely in the hill torrents of Dera Ghazi Khan and in the “local stream and nullahs of KP during the forecast period”. It advised tourists to “remain extra cautious and avoid unnecessary travel”.
“Windstorm/ hailstorm and lightning may damage weak structures (electric poles, billboards, solar panels, etc) during the forecast period,” the department said in its advisory. Deaths in Afghanistan: AfghanistanIn neighbouring Afghanistan, heavy rain and storms sweeping across multiple provinces since Thursday have caused floods and landslides, killing at least 28 people, reports AFP quoting the Afghanistan´s disaster management authority (ANDMA).
Twenty-eight people were martyred, and 49 people were injured, while more than 100 homes have been destroyed. Those killed include a 14-year-old boy struck by lightning in the northwestern Badghis province, confirmed police spokesman Sediqullah Seddiqi.
In the same province, Seddiqi said “three people drowned while trying to recover driftwood to use for heating”. The stormy weather also destroyed at least 130 homes, while more than 430 houses were damaged, ANDMA said.
In central Daikundi, a five-year-old was killed when a roof collapsed. A woman was killed in the same circumstances in eastern Nangarhar, which borders Pakistan, according to police spokesman Sayed Tayeb Hamad.
ANDMA advised people to stay away from “rivers and flooded streams, and follow the weather forecast seriously”. The weather has already prompted the closure of several highways, officials in central and eastern Afghanistan said, with further rain and storms forecast for Tuesday. The latest casualties follow more than 60 people being killed in snow and heavy rain that hit Afghanistan in January.
