At least 35 people have been reported killed and 50 injured due to rains in the first week of March, 2024 in Pakistan. Mostly people were killed due to collapse of buildings. The rains caused flooding in urban areas and landslides in hilly areas.
The majority of deaths were reported in the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Baluchistan. Many of the fatalities were women and children, the provincial disaster management authority said in a statement. In Baluchistan province the coastal town of Gwadar got flooded, forcing authorities to use boats to evacuate some 10,000 people reported Al Jazeera.
According to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) of Baluchistan, 97 houses were destroyed while 200 were partially damaged. The coastal town of Gwadar (the much publicised harbour) alone accounted for over 85 fully destroyed homes and over 175 damaged homes. Over 900 individuals have been rescued by Pakistani authorities in Gwadar.
The Met department had anticipated a rainfall spell starting from February 29th, 2024, bringing significant downpours to different parts of the country until March 2nd. Different advisories were also issued for government agencies and common people, especially road travellers and farmers.
