Category: 1. Pakistan

Six people were killed while one person was injured on Sunday amid flash floods and heavy rain across Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to the Provincial Disaster Management Authorities (PDMA) in both provinces.

At least 22 people have been killed and 11 others have been injured in KP in accidents related to rain, strong winds, flash floods and landslides since June 25, according to PDMA reports. Heavy rainfall and flash floods have wreaked havoc in the province, while 18 people were swept away along the Swat River due to a sudden surge in the gushing water.

Additionally, PDMA warned on Friday that the risk of glacial lake outburst flood (Glof) — the sudden release of water and debris from a glacial lake — has increased in glacial areas of the province due to increasing temperatures, which in turn has raised the risk of additional flooding.

Today’s report from the PDMA outlined that four people were killed in KP while another was injured due to heavy rainfall and flash floods, according to the PDMA’s reporting officers in Malakand and Hazara divisions.

The PDMA said that three rooms in a house in the Buner district’s Teenolo Dheri village collapsed, killing a woman and injuring a man. Separately, in Buner, a temporary bridge pillar at Faizabad Khwar was swept away.

In Malakand, a flash flood caused by heavy rainfall swept through the Heero Shah union council, killing three people.

According to the PDMA report, one woman and two children were swept away. The woman and one of the children drowned.

“Rescue 1122 recovered [a] female body, while two children are still missing,” the report read, adding that a rescue operation was underway.

Rescue 1122 later issued an update stating that one of the children had been rescued.

Meanwhile, Dargai Assistant Commissioner (AC) Shahbaz Khan told Dawn.com that a woman and her grandson drowned in the Zor Mandi nullah as they were crossing it.

“Both bodies were recovered by Rescue 1122 and moved to Dargai hospital,” he stated.

Dargai Additional AC Waheedullah told Dawn.com that there was heavy rain in the mountains of Kot and the Hiro Shah Dargai area in the morning.

“Flash floods occurred in small, dry nullahs originating from the mountains and leading to small streams,” he said. “A nine-year-old boy was swept away by the flash flood in a small dry nullah. His grandmother, around 55-years-old, tried to save him but was also swept away.

The additional AC said that a rescue operation was launched immediately and that the boy’s body was recovered from the Pir Kalay Harichan Charsadda/Badragga Malakand boundary, while the body of the woman was recovered from the Zormandi Quaidabad area.

Additional AC Waheedullah further said that he was present in the field and people were discouraged from approaching or crossing the nullahs through announcements and the deployment of Levies personnel.

Additionally, three cows were rescued from flash floods in the Zormandi area.

“The bodies are being transported to Arang Bajaur and an ambulance from Rescue 1122 was arranged,” Waheedullah added.

In Mansehra, the PDMA stated in its report that an an 18-year-old resident of Rawalpindi had drowned in a flash flood in Putwar Halqa Jabba which was caused by heavy rain.

Amir Khadam, spokesperson for Rescue 1122 in Mansehra, told Dawn.com that the young man drowned when he was crossing a nullah in the Mansehra district with his motorcycle on Sunday morning.

“The body of the deceased was recovered from floodwater in the Ghotar area and was turned over to his heirs,” Khadam said.

The PDMA added that due to the heavy rainfall, landslides were reported in Buner’s Pandriks union council and Torghar district’s Tharala area. Both events caused traffic blockages and heavy machinery was deployed to clear the roads.

Heavy rain continues to lash Punjab

Meanwhile, a PDMA report on monsoon rains in various districts of Punjab, including Lahore, was released today.

According to a PDMA spokesperson, dilapidated and decaying houses collapsed amid heavy rain, with two dead and six injured in various accidents.

“A woman and a child were killed due to the collapse of dilapidated and decaying buildings in Rawalpindi and Gujranwala,” said the spokesperson. “Two dilapidated and mud houses were affected due to monsoon rains.”

PDMA Director General Irfan Ali Kathia said in a statement that he expected heavy rain to persist in Punjab until July 10.

“Heavy monsoon rains are expected in most parts of Punjab in the next 24 hours,” he said. “Stay in safe places during thunderstorms and do not shelter in mud houses or dilapidated buildings.

“During rain, slow down the speed of your vehicle and maintain a reasonable distance,” he urged.

He also instructed medical institutions to provide the best medical assistance to the injured.

“As per the instructions of the Punjab chief minister, citizens’ losses will be compensated,” Kathia instructed. “Assistance will also be provided to the relatives of the deceased as per government policy.”

According to the report, Lahore recorded the highest amount of rainfall in Paniwala Talab, at 74 millimetres (mm).

Similarly, 72mm fell in Lakshmi Chowk, 57mm on Jail Road, 52mm in Nishtar Town, 52mm in Farrukhabad, 51mm in Gulberg, 37mm at the airport, 33mm in Mughal Pura and 44mm at Qurtaba Chowk.

Elsewhere in Punjab, Jhelum recorded 102mm of rainfall, Mangla recorded 81mm and Rawalpindi recorded 43mm.

Rain was also recorded in Sialkot, Gujarat, Narowal, Kasur, Murree, Attock, Gujranwala, Bahawalnagar and Sahiwal.

Warnings issued

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) issued a warning today for widespread rain, wind, and thundershowers expected across several regions of the country from July 6-8 (Sunday to Tuesday), The Associated Press of Pakistan reported.

The wet spell is likely to bring very heavy rainfall at various locations, with the risks of flash floods, urban flooding and landslides, particularly in the northern and hilly areas.

The PMD said that rain, wind and thundershowers are likely in KP, Punjab, northeast and southern Balochistan, southeast Sindh, Kashmir, and Islamabad. Additionally, isolated heavy downpours are expected in upper Punjab, the Potohar region, Islamabad, KP, Azad and Jammu Kashmir (AJK), and northern Balochistan.

The Met Office warned that heavy rainfall may generate flash floods in local streams and nullahs in Murree, Galliyat, Mansehra, Kohistan, Abbottabad, Buner, Chitral, Dir, Swat, Shangla, Nowshera, Swabi, Mardan, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, the hill torrents of Dera Ghazi Khan, northeast Punjab, AJK, and parts of Balochistan.

It added that the risk of landslides and mudslides is high in vulnerable mountainous areas like KP, Murree, Galliyat and AJK, which may cause road closures and travel disruptions.

Four people were killed while one person was injured on Sunday as flash floods swept across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Buner, Malakand and Mansehra areas, according to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA).

At least 22 people have been killed and 11 others have been injured in KP in accidents related to rain, strong winds, flash floods and landslides since June 25, according to PDMA reports. Heavy rainfall and flash floods have wreaked havoc in the province, while 18 people were swept away along the Swat River due to a sudden surge in the gushing water.

Additionally, PDMA warned on Friday that the risk of glacial lake outburst flood (Glof) — the sudden release of water and debris from a glacial lake — has increased in glacial areas of the province due to increasing temperatures, which in turn has raised the risk of additional flooding.

Today’s report from the PDMA outlined that four people were killed in KP while another was injured due to heavy rainfall and flash floods, according to the PDMA’s reporting officers in Malakand and Hazara divisions.

The PDMA said that three rooms in a house in the Buner district’s Teenolo Dheri village collapsed, killing a woman and injuring a man. Separately, in Buner, a temporary bridge pillar at Faizabad Khwar was swept away.

In Malakand, a flash flood caused by heavy rainfall swept through the Heero Shah union council, killing three people.

According to the PDMA report, one woman and two children were swept away. The woman and one of the children drowned.

“Rescue 1122 recovered [a] female body, while two children are still missing,” the report read, adding that a rescue operation was underway.

Rescue 1122 later issued an update stating that one of the children had been rescued.

Meanwhile, Dargai Assistant Commissioner (AC) Shahbaz Khan told Dawn.com that a woman and her grandson drowned in the Zor Mandi nullah as they were crossing it.

“Both bodies were recovered by Rescue 1122 and moved to Dargai hospital,” he stated.

Dargai Additional AC Waheedullah told Dawn.com that there was heavy rain in the mountains of Kot and the Hiro Shah Dargai area in the morning.

“Flash floods occurred in small, dry nullahs originating from the mountains and leading to small streams,” he said. “A nine-year-old boy was swept away by the flash flood in a small dry nullah. His grandmother, around 55-years-old, tried to save him but was also swept away.

The additional AC said that a rescue operation was launched immediately and that the boy’s body was recovered from the Pir Kalay Harichan Charsadda/Badragga Malakand boundary, while the body of the woman was recovered from the Zormandi Quaidabad area.

Additional AC Waheedullah further said that he was present in the field and people were discouraged from approaching or crossing the nullahs through announcements and the deployment of Levies personnel.

Additionally, three cows were rescued from flash floods in the Zormandi area.

“The bodies are being transported to Arang Bajaur and an ambulance from Rescue 1122 was arranged,” Waheedullah added.

In Mansehra, the PDMA stated in its report that an an 18-year-old resident of Rawalpindi had drowned in a flash flood in Putwar Halqa Jabba which was caused by heavy rain.

Amir Khadam, spokesperson for Rescue 1122 in Mansehra, told Dawn.com that the young man drowned when he was crossing a nullah in the Mansehra district with his motorcycle on Sunday morning.

“The body of the deceased was recovered from floodwater in the Ghotar area and was turned over to his heirs,” Khadam said.

The PDMA added that due to the heavy rainfall, landslides were reported in Buner’s Pandriks union council and Torghar district’s Tharala area. Both events caused traffic blockages and heavy machinery was deployed to clear the roads.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari has reaffirmed the presence of religious harmony across the country on the day of Ashura, urging citizens to shun those inciting sectarianism.

Speaking to media in Faisalabad, she said Ashura symbolizes the spirit of sacrifice and stressed that maintaining peace is a shared responsibility.

She outlined that the Punjab government has enforced comprehensive security arrangements for Muharram processions and gatherings.

For the first time, a cyber patrolling force has been deployed during Muharram to monitor online activity, Bukhari said, adding that the entire provincial administration is actively managing Ashura-related events.

She emphasized public safety and service delivery as key government priorities, citing improved sanitation, installation of cold water stations along procession routes, and inspection visits in various districts. She also noted receiving goodwill messages for the Chief Minister during her visits.

The minister revealed that objectionable and sectarian content on social media is being strictly monitored, with several arrests made and 417 hate-spreading websites blocked so far.

Bukhari concluded that the government’s actions are not symbolic, but practical efforts to uphold peace, calling on the public to show mutual respect and reject divisive forces.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi says the local administration and law enforcement agencies across the country are on a high alert to maintain law and order on Youm-e-Ashur.

In a statement, he said crackdown against spreading religious hatred and sectarianism on social media is underway.

The Minister paid tribute to the army, Rangers, Police, administration and other institutions.

Meanwhile, four thousand and eight hundred thirty six (4836) processions are being taken out and five thousand four hundred eighty (5480) Majalis are being held across the country today.

According to Interior Ministry, the Central Monitoring Cell in Islamabad is in contact with the control rooms of the provincial governments.

Strict security measures are in place in Islamabad, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Sindh, Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan to ensure security of the mourning processions.