5 flood victims killed as rescue boat capsizes in Pakistan's Punjab

Lahore, Sep 7 (PTI) Five people were killed when a rescue boat carrying flood victims capsized in the Punjab province of Pakistan, an official said on Sunday.  The incident took place on Saturday evening in Jalalpur Pirwala in the Multan district, around 350 km from Lahore.  Floods have wreaked havoc in Pakistan, with over 900 people being killed in rain and flood-related incidents across the country since late June.  Punjab's Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Director General Irfan Ali Kathia told a press conference here that around 30 flood victims were on board when the rescue boat overturned due to strong water currents.

Five people -- a woman and four children -- drowned as they were without life jackets, while the others were rescued.  "We have launched over 25,000 successful boat rescue operations since the start of floods in Punjab on August 23, and this is the first unfortunate incident of boat capsizing (that has) happened," he said.

"An inquiry has been launched to probe why life jackets were not available for all flood victims being rescued on the boat in question," he added.

Kathia said both official and private rescue boats must not be overloaded under any circumstances and should be equipped with the required life jackets.  Punjab province, with a population of 130 million people, has been witnessing torrential rainfall since mid-August, resulting in almost all rivers and tributaries flowing over danger levels.

Kathia said the death toll related to floods in the province has climbed to 56 since August 23, and added that 4.1 million people have been affected by the floods.

According to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), 907 people have lost their lives and 1,044 others have been injured so far in rain and flood-related incidents across the country since late June.  In a report, it said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa reported the highest number of fatalities with 502 deaths and 218 injuries. In Punjab, 223 people were killed and 654 injured, while Sindh recorded 58 deaths and 78 injuries during the monsoon season.

Balochistan reported 26 deaths, while the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) recorded 41 deaths and 52 injuries due to rains, flash floods, and landslides. In addition, 38 deaths were reported in PoK and nine in Islamabad.

The NDMA says 6,180 livestock perished and 7,848 houses were damaged in rain and flood-related incidents.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Water Resources notified that India has alerted Pakistan about recording “high level” floods downstream at Harike and Ferozpur in the Sutlej River.

According to the notification, the data was recorded at 8 am on Sunday.

It is expected that the flow of water in the River Sutlej will be affected following the alert. PTI MZ GRS GRS GRS