Deadly floods disconnect Balochistan from country

KARACHI/QUETTA/D I KHAN/LAHORE - At last 11 people including five children died in flash floods caused by heavy rains in Sindh and Balochistan provinces on Thursday. Rescue workers said that they were still searching for another five victims after their car swept away by a flash flood into Karachi’s Malir River Wednesday night.

Heavy rains lashed various parts of northern Sindh including Sukkur, Khairpur, Shikarpur, Ghotki, Jaccobabad on Thursday under the influence of a strong monsoon system, causing rainwater accumulation in several low-lying areas of the Kashmore-Kandhkot, Khairpur and Shikarpur districts.

Khairpur district received the high amount of rainfall under the influence of the ongoing monsoon spell, while several other areas also received moderate to heavy showers. This system is likely to continue till the day after tomorrow and may result in heavy falls, which can cause an urban flooding.

 

The death toll from rains and flooding in Balochistan swelled to 206 on Thursday. The devastating incessant rains and deluge continued to wreak havoc in Balochistan claiming six more lives, inundating several more villages and cutting off the province with rest of the country through road and rail links.

 

The fresh spell of monsoon rain that started on June 14 has caused massive destruction in areas where flood-hit people are literally under hot waters.

Due to the land sliding and water flowing over the Quetta-Zhob and Quetta-Lorali highway, connecting Balochistan with Punjab and KPK, traffic is suspended.

 

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif Thursday directed NDMA, PDMA and the provincial government to speed-up relief operations in the flood-affected areas immediately.

According to PM Office, Shehbaz Sharif said the first priority in a flood situation is the rescue of the affected people and their immediate assistance. He also directed that50000 rupees should be provided immediately to each victim family. The Prime Minister directed for immediate provision of accommodation, medical facilities, food and clean drinking water to the victims.

He expressed deep sorrow over the loss of lives and properties due to floods in southern Sindh

Heavy rains lash northern Sindh, eastern Balochistan, southern Punjab n High-flood expected at Taunsa, Guddu, Sukkur barrages n PM directs to speed-up relief operations in flood-hit areas n Many villages evacuated in Punjab’s DG Khan, Rajanpur n 11 more including five children die in Sindh, Balochistan, KP

On the other hand, Chairman Federal Flood Commission Ahmed Kamal says high flood is expected at Taunsa, Guddu and Sukkur barrages in next two to three days. He said Sindh, the eastern parts of Balochistan and the southern parts of Punjab are under heavy rains. Ahmed Kamal said heavy rains in the country will result in hundred percent filling of Tarbela dam. He also called for introducing projects to contain and disperse water to avoid floods.

 

 

Rescue and relief efforts by the Pakistan Army are underway in various flood-hit areas of Balochistan and Punjab. According to Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), Army troops are busy in relief activities in Dera Ghazi Khan, Rajanpur, Naseerabad and Lasbela. Affected population and their belongings being shifted to safer places. Army medical teams are providing medical care to affected people.

 

Two children drowned, while a search operation for five people was underway on Thursday afternoon after a car was swept away by a flash flood into Karachi’s Malir River Wednesday night.

According to a statement issued by the Memon Goth police, a Toyota Corolla, having registration number BGV-765 and carrying seven people including the driver, was swept away in the river at 8:30pm Wednesday.

The car on Thursday was pulled out of the river while the search for missing persons was underway,” the statement said, adding that the search operation was being jointly carried out by police and rescue teams.

The spokesperson of the Edhi Foundation said that the body of Mohammed Moosa, 10, and Hamna, 7, were recovered after the car accident. He said that rescue teams were facing difficulties in tracing the drowned persons because of the water flow.

 

Meanwhile, Memon Goth Station House Officer Ateeq Rehman said that the family was visiting Karachi from Hyderabad to attend a wedding ceremony. “They were returning to Hyderabad when they reportedly drowned,” he said. Local residents said the car was found floating in the Malir River in the Nabi Bux Bikak area.

 

Accordign to relative of the victims, a family of six, including a couple and their four children, and a driver were travelling in the car. They were identified as Mohammed Zeeshan Ansari, Rabia, Hamna, Ebad, Mohammed Moosa, and Ayan and their driver, Abdul Rehman.

 

Malir Deputy Commissioner Irfan Salam also visited the site to oversee the operation. Talking to reporters, he revealed that another man had drowned in the river yesterday while crossing it.

 

Separately, five people, including two children, lost their lives in rain-related incidents in Karachi on Thursday, police and rescue services said.

Super Market police said that the body of Sahib Shah, 14, was recovered from the Gujar nullah in Liaquatabad. It was recovered and moved to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for legal proceedings.

A man, Murad Ali, 35, was electrocuted while working at a building under construction near the Rangers Headquarters in Baloch Colony, according to police and Edhi Foundation. The body was shifted to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Hospital.

Fifteen-year-old Noor also died from electrocution near the Ibrahim Masjid in New Nazimabad. The Manghopir police said his body was moved to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital.

Rain lashed several areas of Karachi Thursday and is expected to last throughout this week after a new pressure system from India entered Sindh.

 

Also, two children drowned in pond in the Nawa Kili area of Quetta, police said on Thursday. The police said that the victims were identified as five-year-old Ehsanullah and four-year-old Siddiqullah, residents of Kili Shah Alam. Further investigation was underway.

 

Meanwhile, all road and railway network connecting Balochistan to the rest of Pakistan was disconnected due to recent floods and heavy rainfall in most parts of the country.

 

According to the media reports, almost all the highways and railways connecting Balochistan with Sindh, Punjab, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remain disconnected as floods wreck havoc in the province.

 

The Quetta to Karachi Highway connection remains suspended for the last one week due to heavy floods caused by recent rainfall.

 

The flow of traffic, on fort ‘Manro’ at Dera Ghazi Khan, which connects Punjab with Balochistan, remains suspended. Moreover, massive flooding in Musa Khail, district  Balochistan, wiped out the roads causing suspension of traffic.

 

Whereas, the road network connecting Balochistan with KP was blocked due to soil and land erosion in the mountains of Drazanda, Sherani district.

 

The provincial government, meanwhile, has asked people to stay in homes for their safety and evacuate those areas which may come under the flood.

 

At least two people including a minor child were died while four others got injured in rain related incidents in the Dera Ismail Khan.

A five-year old boy Abdul Aziz son of Bakht Zaman fell and drowned into the drain here which was opposite to Liaquat Park, near State Life Building. The incident took place due to slippery condition of street due to continuous raining.

The Rescue 1122 team reached the site and fished out the body of little child after an hour long search operation with the assistance of WSSC officials and local people. The body was shifted to the hospital which later handed over to the heirs.

Similarly, due to rain and slippage on the road, an elderly citizen riding a motorcycle died in a motorcycle skidding accident occurred near ‘Go Petrol Pump’ here on Dera-Bannu road. The identity of the elderly man could not be ascertained yet.

In another incident, four people including two children and a woman were injured when the roof of a house caved in here near Himmat Adda, Chashma road. The medical team of Rescue 1122, after receiving the information, immediately reached the spot. The rescue team provided first aid to the victims and shifted them to the hospital.

The current torrential rains triggered low-level flash floods in certain areas of the district, affecting a number of houses and standing crops. The intermittent rains in Dera Ismail Khan and its suburbs from Wednesday morning turned into a storm at night time. The low-lying areas of the city and the streets of the city areas were filled with water. The rain water also entered into houses and shops in different areas.

According to the local met office, the city received more than 66 mm rain.

The flood and rain water entered into over a dozen of small villages in Kari Shamuzai, and merged tribal areas of Daraban Tehsil.

The floodwaters also entered into Tehsil Daraban, Musazai Sharif road and surrounding areas. Due to which the land connection of these areas has been cut off with other areas due to damage to the roads. The Lawara Bridge in Tehsil Daraban is also facing serious threats.

 

Due to torrential rains in the entire district, the electricity and communication systems were disrupted, while many flood-affected areas were facing difficulties in the relief activities due to the breakdown of the roads due to the disconnection of the ground connection of these areas.

 

Commissioner DG Khan Division Muhammad Usman Anwar, in view of more rain forecast in the coming days, urged the people of Rajanpur and DG Khan districts to avoid entering floodwaters and shift to higher and safer places.

Talking to affected people during his visit to the flood-hit areas of the division, the commissioner promised that every member of the families internally displaced due to floods would be shifted to their respective homes once the floodwaters were receded and damaged roads were cleared for traffic.

He highlighted the importance of warnings issued from the administration from time to time pleading that torrential rains had broken all previous records and continuous flooding left little room for water absorption in soil.

 

Even a smaller flood wave could prove damaging, he said while advising people not to enter the floodwaters to avert the risk of being swept away or other submerged hazards.

 

Taking notice of the blockade of inter-provincial highway near Rakhi Garj due to landsliding, the commissioner asked the political assistant of Koh-e-Suleman Authority to seek help from NHA and other departments for arranging heavy machinery needed to clear the debris and restoring traffic.

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