At least 478 people have died and 536 others have been injured in Pakistan due to heavy rains and floods that have hit the country since the start of the monsoon in mid-June, according to the latest official data.
The death toll rose on Monday after at least 44 people were killed in the past 24 hours due to heavy rains, including seven children, Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said in its latest bulletin.
Since the beginning of the monsoon on June 14, the rains and floods completely destroyed 7,472 houses and partially damaged nearly 30,000in addition to damaging some 1,000 kilometers of roads and destroying 72 bridges, according to the NDMA.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif traveled on Monday to visit one of the worst affected areas.
Today I want to tell you that at this difficult time, not only the federal and provincial governments, but all the country’s institutions, are here to help you,” the president told the victims.
Soldiers are deployed to the worst-affected areas to help with rescue efforts, as well as provide medical care for the wounded and restore damaged infrastructure, the army said.
According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department, the rains will continue in the coming days in the already affected areas.
The worst floods in Pakistan’s history occurred in 2010, after an unusually intense monsoon, which, coupled with particularly abundant summer melting, caused around 2,000 deaths and affected more than 20 million people.
Source: Observadora
