At least 313 people have died, and over 150 remain missing after flash floods triggered by days of torrential monsoon rains swept through northwest Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province over the past three days, a senior official said on Sunday.
Rescue and relief operations are struggling to keep pace with the scale of destruction, as entire communities have been devastated and access to affected areas remains challenging.
At a press briefing in the provincial capital Peshawar, Asfandyar Khattak, director general of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority, said that as many as 150 people may still be trapped under debris in Buner district, where 213 deaths and 126 injuries have been confirmed.
In this worst affected area, locals of Buner district suffered great losses, from property to loved ones. Many say they are witnessing such horrific scenes for the first time in their lives, and the floodwaters were so powerful that families had no time to escape their homes.
"We live one kilometer away. This cloudburst occurred on the front of the cracks. We have recovered 54 dead bodies and conducted funerals for 43," said a local resident.
"So far, we have recovered 38 dead bodies, out of which 14 dead bodies have been kept in my house and 24 in another house. The deaths are more than 100, but the exact number is not known yet," said another local resident.
The Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province Ali Amin Gandapur who visited Buner district has directed the relevant authorities to speed up the rescue and relief operations.
According to the local administration, they need more days to complete this rescue and relief operation.
Speaking at a press conference in Islamabad, Chairman of National Disaster Management Authority Inam Haider Malik said three more monsoon spells are expected in the coming weeks, with rainfall intensity likely to be about 50 percent higher than earlier forecasts.
Malik said extreme summer heat had expanded the monsoon system, which is now projected to last until early September. He noted that damage assessments would be carried out in affected areas, while restoration of communication infrastructure and delivery of relief packages to high-casualty districts would be prioritized.
Flash floods kill over 300, leave 150 missing in NW Pakistan as rescue efforts continue
