PESHAWAR: At least eight people were killed and 14 were injured when heavy rains lashed a large part of the province overnight.

The Provincial Disaster Management Authority confirmed six deaths and 14 injuries in rain-related incidents in various districts of the province.

The rains, which began to fall on Friday evening, caused flash floods, road blockades and causalities in several areas.

Flash floods, landslides, road blockades reported in large part of province

The PDMA figures showed that three people were killed in Bajaur, one each in Torghar, Swat, Malakand, Shangla and Lower Dir districts due to rain.

At least 13 people were injured in Shangla district, while a man suffered injuries in Swat.

The rains also caused flash floods in Bajaur, Lower Dir, Shangla, Chitral, Shangla, Buner and Mardan districts.

Police official Fazil was killed by a landslide near Dadam village in Hassanzai tehsil of Torghar district.

A district administration’s report said landslides hit various places in the district, including Daraband-Judba Thakot Road, while the district administration was in the process of clearing roads.

In Lower Dir district, Ayaz, 12, was washed away in flash floods in Adenzai area on Friday night. The body was recovered from Chakdarra area on Saturday.

A man and his wife, who were travelling in car, were washed away in flash floods in Arang tehsil of Bajaur district.

The search for one of the bodies by local authorities was under way.

Another man, Gul Khan, was killed in a roof collapse incident in the area.

Schoolteacher Altaf was washed away by a flash flood in Toregate area of Batkhela area of Malakand. The body was later recovered and handed over to the family.

Two people were killed in multiple rain-related incidents in Shangla district, while seven people were injured.

In Alpuri area of Bisham tehsil, three people were washed away by flash floods. Two bodies were recovered, while search for the third one is under way.

Two people were injured in a traffic accident in Makhozai area of Puran tehsil, while four suffered injuries in another road accident in Yakhtangi area.

A man died in Bishegram area of Swat district after being hit by a rock during the collection of firewood. The incident also injured another person.

In Drosh area of Lower Chitral district, a flash flood hit a Chinese construction company’s camp. However, the Chinese workers executing the Lavi hydropower project remained safe.

The area is located around 60 kilometers in the south of the district headquarters.

The authorities said foreign workers had been safely moved out of the site, which was close to a nullah.

The Karakoram Highway, which was blocked at many places due to heavy landslides on Friday night in Dasu area of Upper Kohistan, was reopened to traffic after many hours.

“The KKH has been cleared to all sorts of traffic. The passengers stranded in vehicles on both sides of road have left to their respective destinations,” district police officer Abdul Saboor Khan told reporters.

The passengers travelling between Gilgit-Baltistan and KP remained stranded for many hours and left to their respective destinations following road was reopened to traffic at 11am by machinery provided by companies working at Dasu dam.

Mr Abdul Saboor said the police shifted machinery the areas hit by landslides.

“The motorists and commuters remained safe after heavy boulders and mass mud rolled down the hills,” road user Mohammad Naeem told reporters.

The rainwater entered around 25 houses in Tor Warsak area of Buner district.

However, no damage to public life was reported.

The flash floods washed away suspension bridges in Bar Gokand and Shakay areas of Daggar tehsil, while Kalpani nullah of Mardan burst its banks and flooded several areas.

However, the residents remained unhurt.

The Pakistan Metrological Department recorded 131mm rain in Malam Jabba, 50mm in Balakot, 48mm in Besham, 31mm in Bannu, 30mm in Saidu Sharif, 27mm in Kakul, 21mm in Dir Upper, 12mm in Parachinar and 12mm in Dera Ismail Khan.

Published in Dawn, August 11th, 2019