90 killed, 4,000 houses destroyed in monsoon rains in Balochistan

Balochistan

Heavy rain and flooding have killed at least 90 people, destroyed thousands of homes and damaged crops and roads in Balochistan, the provincial disaster management authority said.

Monsoon rains that started in early June have wreaked havoc in Balochstan, killing at least 90 people, including three in the past 24 hours, and injuring some 63 people, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said. The rains have damaged nearly 4,000 homes in the province and destroyed many roads and other infrastructure. Meanwhile, 706 livestock animals have also been killed in floods. Several bridges and roads have been inundated while dams and reservoirs have been filled to capacity. Ziarat, Pishin, Muslim Bagh, and Quetta were the cities that recorded the highest rainfall in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan.

Relief items dispatched

Balochistan’s chief minister said the provincial government is providing relief to the rain-affected people, sending rations, tents and other assistance.

The PDMA is also dispatching relief items to the residents of the most-affected areas such as Quetta and Panjgur. At least 1,100 ration bags and 50 camps have been sent, along with 200 blankets. Last week, Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) in collaboration with King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) dispatched truckloads of emergency relief convoy for 21,000 flood-affected people in Balochistan.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered the NDMA to expand relief assistance in the flood-hit areas of Balochistan. The prime minister also pledged Rs1 million to the families of those killed in the rains and floods after a joint survey.

Balochistan CM requests help to rebuild infrastructure

Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo said that the province needs financial support to reconstruct critical infrastructures, such as roads and dams, damaged by recent rains and floods. Bizenjo reached out to the prime minister and requested maximum funds for the underdeveloped province for relief and rehabilitation of rain-affected areas. A PDMA team is currently conducting the damage assessment including the loss of lives, buildings, crops and livestock during the unprecedented rains. The chief minister vowed strict action against those companies that used substandard material for the construction of roads, highways and bridges that were swept away in the rains.

Record rains kill 282 in Pakistan

Rains in Balochistan and Sindh provinces have broken 30-year record this monsoon season, according to Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman.

As many as 282 people have died in Pakistan during the five weeks of monsoon rains and flash floods, officials said on Thursday. The downpour has damaged highways, bridges and about 5,600 houses since June 14, according to the NDMA.