23 more die in rain incidents in Pakistan's Punjab; nationwide toll hits 258

Lahore, Jul 24 (PTI) Twenty-three more people died in rain-related incidents in Pakistan's Punjab province this week, raising the nationwide death toll to 258 this monsoon so far, a government body said on Thursday.

"Since the start of monsoon on June 25, some 143 people have lost their lives and 488 injured due to rain-related incidents in Punjab," the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said.

"Twenty-three people died due to monsoon-related incidents in Punjab this week," it said.

The death toll from monsoon-related incidents across Pakistan has risen to 258, with 616 injured, since the start of the season. The fatalities include 89 men, 46 women, and 123 children, the PDMA said.

According to PDMA Punjab Director General Irfan Ali Kathia, besides the 143 deaths, 488 people were injured and 158 houses were damaged due to the monsoon rains since June 25.

"Most of the deaths occurred due to the collapse of mud houses, dilapidated buildings and roofs. Deaths were also reported due to electrocution, lightning strikes and drowning incidents," he said.

The rains also caused floods in different parts of the Punjab province.

Residents of different areas of Muzaffargarh, Dera Ghazi Khan, Layyah, Rahim Yar Khan, Jhang, Jehlum, Hafizabad, Chakwal and Nankana Sahib are being evacuated due to the rising water levels in the Chenab, Indus and Jhelum rivers.

Houses and standing crops in hundreds of villages of the province have inundated because of low-to-medium level flooding in various rivers of the province, forcing evacuations in the affected and vulnerable areas.

Heavy rains also triggered flash floods in several districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan, damaging houses and increasing water levels in rivers and streams.

The fourth spell of monsoon rains is expected to continue until July 25, with rainfall forecast in most districts of Punjab, including Lahore and Rawalpindi, officials said.

The PDMA has also warned of potential urban flooding in Lahore, Sialkot, Faisalabad, and Gujranwala, as well as a risk of overflowing rivers and streams across Punjab.

Meanwhile, thousands of people, including foreign tourists, remained stranded at multiple locations in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir's Gilgit-Baltistan region due to roadblocks caused by rain-triggered landslides.

Mobile and internet services across the region were also disrupted after fibre optic cables were damaged in several areas, the Dawn newspaper reported.

Regional government spokesperson Faizullah Faraq said the strategic Karakoram Highway (KKH) was blocked in the Kohistan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Thousands of passengers, including tourists, travelling to and from the region are stranded on both sides of the highway.

Faraq said while KKH has been reopened for traffic within Gilgit Baltistan, restoration work is underway in Kohistan.

The Babusar Pass Road is also blocked at several locations. Torrential rains had triggered flash floods and landslides in a 7-8 km radius around Babusar Top in the Naran valley.

Faraq assured that all tourists stranded on the Babusar route have been safely evacuated and search operations for missing individuals are underway.

River erosion also caused the collapse of the Hotu suspension bridge in Shigar, cutting off the only access to the K2 base camp. A large number of foreign expedition members and trekkers were stranded, while eight villages were also cut off. PTI MZ/SH GRS SCY SCY