Pakistan’s climate minister says 77 dead in 3 weeks
At least 77 people, including women and children, have died in rain-related incidents in Pakistan over the past three weeks, the country s minister for climate change said Wednesday.
Since June 14, the monsoon rains have damaged homes, roads, bridges and power stations across the country, the minister, Sherry Rehman, told a news conference in Islamabad, as storms continued to lashing the country.
Rehman said 39 of the 77 people died in rain-related incidents just in Baluchistan, a large but sparsely populated province in the country s southwest.
Rehman said that this was a national disaster.
TV footage showed some vehicles in Baluchistan being swept away by the deluges of floods.
Heavy rain slammed Islamabad and the eastern province of Punjab.
President Arif Alvi expressed his grief and sorrow over the loss of life in Baluchistan and elsewhere in the country.
The provincial disaster management agency said that streets and homes were flooded in Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province.
Rehman said the recent rains in Pakistan were 87 percent heavier than the average downpour.
She said that Pakistan should be prepared to face more flooding because the country's glaciers are melting at a faster pace because of the changes in climate. That is causing flash floods that have damaged infrastructure.
Naseer Nasar, a spokesman for the Baluchistan disaster management agency, told The Associated Press that at least 50 people had been injured in rain-related incidents in the province since June. He said rescuers were transporting people to safer places away from floods and rain-hit areas in Baluchistan.
Thousands of cities in Pakistan struggle with the annual monsoon deluge, which draws criticism for poor government planning. The season runs from July to September and experts say rains are essential for irrigating crops and replenishing dams and other water reservoirs in Pakistan.
Some parts of southern Pakistan have been affected by drought since earlier this year.