The proverbial tip of the iceberg is Pakistan’s flood disaster, which has claimed nearly a thousand lives. A large hotel in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Kalam valley was carried away by flood waters on Friday. The rain continued to wreak havoc in the Swat province.
In Kalam, the hotel was situated along the Swat River. According to Geo News, it was quickly evacuated, and no casualties were reported. In the wake of the tragedy, several hotels close to the river were also vacated.
Meanwhile, a National Highway Authority (NHA) alert has been issued for tourists in the towns of Bahrain and Kalam in Swat. The alert said that a flood-like situation has developed in the district due to heavy rain.
The N-95 and N-90 highways’ Bahrain-Kalam sections, according to the report, have been seriously damaged by the rain.
According to an NHA official, flooding has damaged the Bahrain bridge and its approach road, in addition to the Bahrain-Kalam road and nearby railroad tracks.
The representative advised residents and visitors in Swat to forego unnecessary travel.
Declared an Emergency
After seeing the level of destruction brought on by the flooding, the administration of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has declared an emergency in Swat.
According to a notification from the KP relief department, the state of emergency would last till August 30 in order to facilitate relief activities in Swat’s flood-affected areas.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has been instructed by KP CM Mahmood Khan to speed up relief efforts in the region in addition to providing groceries, prepared food, and other supplies in a timely manner to those affected.
Communication bridges in Swat’s Matta, Sukhra, and Lalko have reportedly also been damaged, according to the district government.
The Swat Mingora Bypass Road has been closed to traffic owing to flooding, and several hotels and restaurants on the Mingora Bypass have been flooded.
Public and private schools in Nowshera, however, have been shut down because to water for the past two days, according to the deputy commissioner.
KP publishes a flood warning.
Water flows in the River Swat at Khawazakhela point and its tributaries/nullahs had reached high to very high flood levels. 227,899 cusecs, according to a flood warning issued by KP’s Provincial Emergency Operations Centre on Friday. This “may result in a dangerous situation for communities living nearby,” the warning stated.
In order to develop mitigation and safety measures, the deputy commissioners of Swat, Lower Dir, Malakand, Mohmand, Charsadda, Mardan, Nowshera, and Peshawar have been ordered to “quickly identify critical sites and communities in danger.”
The center advised residents living along the banks of rivers to become more aware of the rise in water flows and to maintain an elevated alert level in order to shorten reaction and response times.
The document continued, “Make announcements for prompt evacuation of the at-risk population from low-lying/flood-prone regions in accordance with evacuation plans.”
The PDMA also gave the go-ahead to limit vehicle travel in flood-prone areas and to evacuate cattle from certain locations.
Size of the destruction throughout Pakistan
Since June, unusual rainfall has caused flash floods and devastation throughout Pakistan.
These statistics from the National Disaster Management Authority can be used to determine the extent of the destruction.
The severe rains and floods have resulted in 937 fatalities and 1,343 injuries.
34 further fatalities and 50 injuries have occurred in KP, Sindh, Balochistan, and Punjab in within the past 24 hours.
793,995 animals died in the rains overall, and another 85,897 died in the next day.
In addition, another 175,069 homes were damaged in the previous day, bringing the total number of damaged homes to 670,328.