Floods in Chitral, Pakistan kill 31, rescue operations continue

Pakistani villagers wade through floodwaters in Rajanpur, Pakistan, Pakistan, Thursday, July 23, 2015. The country’s military has deployed helicopters and boats Wednesday to evacuate flood victims, as 285,000 have been affected by monsoon rains and flash floods in and around the city of Chitral in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to the National Disaster Management Authority. (AP Photo/Asim Tanveer)

Massive rescue and relief efforts are under way for those isolated due to the flash floods that have hit Chitral, Pakistan over the last ten days, killing 31 people and washing away hundreds of homes with no immediate break in sight.

Military helicopters are hovering over the flood-ravaged villages to rescue the affected people and drop food as local authorities are engaged in setting up make-shift shelters and food huts for those trapped.

Rains and floods have washed away more than 300 houses (with as many as 70 only on Sunday), 25 mosques, bridges, educational institutions, communication equipment and several acres of crops in Chitral.

Kalash Valley and Ganche are still disconnected from the rest of the country as repair work on damaged link roads is under way.

As many as nine hydroelectric powerhouses have also been damaged while the Otol village has been completely washed away by floods. But locals have begun reconstruction of the plants in some areas.

So far, 300 tents have been distributed among those whose houses have been damaged. At least 10 Mobile Utility Store outlets have been established for the affected people and permanent Utility Stores are expected to be opened within two weeks.

“All necessary grocery items will be made available in the mobile stores for the facilitation of flood affected,” Utility Stores Corporation Managing Director Sultan Mehmood told APP.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited the flood-hit area in Chitral soon after Eid to personally look at the devastation caused by flash floods. He instructed authorities to transport the affected people to safer places, and ordered food and medical help for them.

The PM has announced Rs500million for the infrastructural rehabilitation of the city. He also announced writing off all agriculture loans of affected areas in addition to compensation worth half million rupees for each destroyed house.

He further directed the National Health Emergency Preparedness Network (NHEPRN) to expand its medical response capacities in the affected areas after five more deaths were reported, taking the death toll to 31.

The National Disaster Management Authority has already distributed 15 tons of dry ration, one ton of mineral water bottles and one million Aqua Tabs (Water Purification Tablets) in flood-hit Chitral. The ration includes flour, rice, pulses, oil, milk, tea and sugar and mineral water.

Two aircrafts of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) are taking part in the operation, which besides transporting relief items to the area, have also evacuated 80 people deserted due to the floods.

According to Inter Services Public Relations, army troops, as part of flood relief and rescue operation teams, have distributed 17.5 tons of ration so far and rescued 164 affected people.

A woman sits with her son after being displaced due to heavy rains in a suburb of Peshawar, Pakistan, Thursday, July 23, 2015. The country’s military has deployed helicopters and boats Wednesday to evacuate flood victims, as 285,000 have been affected by monsoon rains and flash floods in and around the city of Chitral in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to the National Disaster Management Authority. (AP Photo/Mohammad Sajjad)

Pakistani volunteers evacuate marooned people after heavy rains in a suburb of Peshawar, Pakistan, Thursday, July 23, 2015. The country’s military has deployed helicopters and boats Wednesday to evacuate flood victims, as 285,000 have been affected by monsoon rains and flash floods in and around the city of Chitral in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to the National Disaster Management Authority. (AP Photo/Mohammad Sajjad)

In this photo taken on Thursday, July 23, 2015, Pakistan army officers help stranded people evacuate from flood-hit areas in Chitral, Pakistan. Pakistani authorities say flash floods, triggered by monsoon rains, have killed 12 more people across the country, bringing the overall death toll since early last week to 15, as rescuers struggle to move those stranded to safer places. (AP Photo/Sherin Zada)