12 killed as floods continue to wreak havoc

ISLAMABAD: At least 12 persons were killed as rains and floods continued to wreak havoc in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh on Saturday.
Three persons, two children among them, were swept away and another electrocuted as flash floods in seasonal streams and low-lying areas caused widespread devastation in Nowshera.
Two minors were killed while four other members of a family sustained injuries when the roof of a house collapsed in Kohat.
In Lakki Marwat, a youth drowned in the flooded stream in Dallokhel village as a group of young men were playing in a seasonal stream, Jabaraye, near Sattar Wanda when flash floods swept away Abdullah. A young boy was swept away in the flood water in Chitral while in Chichawatni a person died when the roof of a hotel caved in.
A man, named Ihsanullah, and two children, whose identity could not be ascertained, were washed away by the flash floods in a seasonal stream in the Pirpiai area of Nowshera.
The body of Ihsanullah was retrieved from the water in the Bela Koroona area. A van carrying schoolchildren was also swept away by the floodwater in the same stream. Later, the locals rescued 22 children onboard. Meanwhile, the Federal Flood Commission (FFC) said that Rajanpur was under threat of flood as the River Indus was flowing in very high flood at Guddu, high flood at Taunsa and Sukkur and medium flood in Kalabagh-Chashma reach.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Provincial Disaster Management Authority said due to continued torrential rains in KP, water level in River Chitral, Panjkora, Swat and Kabul was generally increasing.
In KP, the heavy rains that started the previous night triggered flash floods in the seasonal streams and damaged several mud-houses, markets, other structures, standing crops, killing several cattle heads and disrupting communication system.
The rise in the water level in the River Kabul also triggered the alarm for the settlements along the bank of the watercourse, prompting the local administration to assess the situation to inform the people of any likely floods.
Meanwhile, in Chitral, the floods inundated more villages as destructions continued in the valley on the 16th consecutive day on Saturday.
Floodwater inundated most parts of the scenic Bamburet valley as fresh floods caused by torrential rains swept away dozens of hotels, shops and houses in the hitherto tourist haven.
Reports pouring in from the scenic valley suggested that a hotel of the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation, a hydel power station and hundreds of acres of agricultural land came under the floods in Bamburet.
Officials said that a police check post and a bridge meant for jeeps were also washed away by the fast-moving water at the confluence of Bamburet and Rambur valleys.
It was learnt that the dirt track from Dobazh to Ayun village was also washed away, which has cut off the Kalash-inhabited valleys.
The floodwater coming out of Kalash valley wreaked havoc in Ayun, one of the most beautiful villages of the district, damaging dozens of shops and houses.
In upper Chitral, flood played havoc in Khot, Shagram, Ujno and Muzhgol villages, inundating houses and agriculture fields. In Khot, eight houses, one mosque, one Jamaat Khana, seven small hydel power units and standing crops were destroyed. The floodwater entered Muzhgol village for the second time and damaged the remaining houses and bridges. It was reported that 15 houses were damaged.
The Chitral River was in high flood and the local administration officials were using megaphones and sirens to inform the people about the impending flood and direct them to move to safer places.
The rains also caused the suspension of traffic on the Peshawar-Chitral Road at Drosh and Lowari Pass.
It was reported that several power pylons connected with the national grid were also razed to the ground, suspending power supply to Chitral. The Chitral-Booni Road is also blocked at Moroi and Reshun due to fresh flooding.
Meanwhile Pakistan Navy flood relief operation MADAD continued in the low-lying areas of Sindh.
According to a statement issued by ISPR, Navy’s search and rescue teams had evacuated 1,500 people in Khairpur, Ghotki, Sukkur, Pannu Aqil and adjoining areas during the last 24 hours.
A consignment of ten tons relief goods has also been dispatched to Ghazi Ghat area of district Dera Ghazi Khan for distribution among the flood victims.
Pakistan Navy field commands are in constant liaison with PDMA and other civil authorities to respond to any flood related emergency.
Multan Corps soldiers of Pakistan Army continued their relief operations in flood-hit areas of South Punjab and shifted 48 victims to safer places in DG Khan area besides extending free medical services, medicines and ration to them.
According to a press release issued by the ISPR, the Pak Army soldiers provided free medical treatment and medicines to 317 flood affected people at army medical camp in Layyah while ration bags were also distributed among 645 flood-hit families.
The Pak army jawans rescued 48 people during a rescue operation in DG Khan area and shifted them to safer places while an army free medical camp was set up in Rajanpur.
According to the flood warning issued by FFC, the low-lying riverine areas along the River Indus in Punjab - Bhakkar, Layyah, Multan, Muzaffargarh, Rajanpur, DG Khan and Rahim Yar Khan districts - and Sindh province - Ghotki, Kashmore, Shikarpur, Sukkur, Khairpur and Larkana districts - would be affected by the flood.
According to daily report on Saturday, River Kabul was also flowing in medium flood in Warsak-Nowshera reach, while River Swat at Charsadda Road bridge and the River Ravi at Sidhnai Barrage were in low flood. Other main rivers including Jhelum, Chenab and Sutlej were flowing normal.
On the other hand, Senior Minister for Information and Irrigation Sindh Nisar Ahmed Khuhro said there was no flood threat in Sindh province because the flow of water was low in Indus River as compared to 2010.