87 killed, over 80 injured as heavy rains wreak havoc in Pakistan

Islamabad, April 20: At least 87 people have been killed and 82 others injured in separate rain-triggered incidents in Pakistan over the past week as heavy downpours continued to wreak havoc in parts of the country, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said.

The NDMA on Friday added that the rains have partially or fully damaged 2,715 houses across the country, adding that most of the people died in the incidents related to structural collapse, lightning strike and flash flood, Xinhua news agency reported.

Most of the damages and casualties were reported from the country's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where 36 people lost their lives and 53 others sustained injuries due to torrential rains, followed by the eastern Punjab province, which has reported 25 deaths and eight injuries, according to the NDMA.

A total of 15 people were killed and 10 others injured in the southwestern Balochistan province, whereas 11 people died with 11 others injured due to heavy rains in the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir during the period, said the NDMA.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed deep grief and sorrow over the loss of precious lives and property due to recent heavy rains, advising the concerned departments to speed up relief activities in the affected areas and expedite work for opening roads that have been closed due to rains and landsliding.

Earlier in its weather prediction report on Friday, the NDMA predicted that the ongoing rains would continue until April 22, saying the expected rainfall may trigger flash floods in several areas of the country.