Floods Leave 116 Dead in Northwest Pakistan; Troops Start Rescue Effort

Source: Bloomberg

Pakistan sent troops into its northwest province to start a rescue effort after flash floods and heavy rains left at least 116 people dead in the region’s worst ever storms.

Homes and bridges collapsed, live electric wires fell into the water and families were swept away in the floods in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Mujahid Khan, a spokesman for the Edhi Rescue Service said by telephone from Peshawar.

“The infrastructure of this province was already destroyed by terrorism,” Mian Iftikhar Hussain, provincial information minister, said in a televised news conference from Peshawar. “Whatever was left, was finished off by these floods. There are chances of further flooding and more damage.” He appealed for tents, boat and food for those left homeless and asked people to evacuate affected towns and cities.

“Army troops are equipped with life jackets, motorboats and heavy rafts to shift families, luggage, cattle and other belongings,” the military said in a statement on its web site today. At least 1,500 people were rescued by soldiers, it said.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-29/flash-floods-leave-dozens-dead-in-pakistan-after-worst-storm-in-35-years.html

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Scores dead in Pakistan floods

Source: Al Jazeera English

Hundreds of people are feared dead and thousands more are stranded after monsoon rains caused widespread flooding in Pakistan.

Rivers burst their banks and streets were washed away in the northwest of the country on Thursday.

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Emergency situation

Al Jazeera's Kamal Hyder, reporting from Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, said that an emergency situation was developing in the country.

"The rain is not stopping, many bridges have been washed away and there are reports that 100-year records are being broken."

Read more: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2010/07/20107291546874240.html

1954 was a public health disaster, 1973 displaced 100K and killed thousands. I think a million people lost their homes in 1988.

On the positive side, the army tends to mobilize quickly for relief efforts.

Yes the army is mobilizing and doing a great job but this monsoon is overwhelming them. Even though this is catastrophic, Pakistan officials are not asking for international help. The BBC is saying the government is very quiet and the army so far has been on its own.

And it is supposed to rain again there today.

North-west region hardest hit as floodwaters wash away roads and bridges, leaving an estimated 400,000 people stranded

Associated Press
guardian.co.uk, Friday 30 July 2010 08.51 BST


The death toll in three days of flooding in Pakistan reached at least 313 today, rescue and government officials said, as rains bloated rivers, submerged villages, and triggered landslides.

The rising toll from the monsoon rains underscore the poor infrastructure in Pakistan, where under-equipped rescue workers were struggling to reach people stranded in remote villages. The weather forecast was mixed, with some areas expected to see reduced rainfall and others likely to see an intensification.

Pakistani TV showed images of people clinging to fences and other stationary items as water at times gushed over their heads.

The north-west appeared to be the hardest hit, and Mian Iftikhar Hussain, the information minister for the province, said it was the worst flooding in the region since 1929. The highway connecting Peshawar to the federal capital, Islamabad, was shut down after the water washed away bridges and other links.

Full article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/30/hundreds-dead-pakistan-flooding