The death toll from rain-related incidents over the past month has risen to 147 as monsoon rains continue to lash Pakistan, triggering flash floods in some parts of the country, officials say.
The National Disaster Management Authority said 88 women and children were among the dead. The monsoon rains also damaged homes, roads, bridges and power stations across the country, it said.
The situation was particularly dire in the major southern port city of Karachi, the country’s largest, where entire neighbourhoods remained submerged on Monday, leaving commuters stranded in places or attempting to wave through knee-deep water on foot or on bicycles.
“At the moment, the situation is like this that we need to travel by boat rather than in vehicles as the roads are flooded,” said one resident, Abdul Raheem.
Some Karachi residents said they were forced to abandon their cars on submerged roads and walk through waist-high water. Authorities summoned paramilitary troops to help with efforts to drain the waters from flooded streets and evacuate people.
The rains are said to be almost twice as heavy as the average downpour at this time of the year. They started in mid-June, initially causing havoc in southwestern Balochistan province, where 63 people have died so far.
In Sindh province, of which Karachi is the capital, the disaster control agency said at least 26 people died. Heavy rain also struck national capital Islamabad and the eastern Punjab province.
Hundreds more were left homeless after their homes collapsed in the rain and flooding, he said, adding that eight dams had burst due to the heavy rains.
In northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, two people, including a six-year-old, died and four were injured when their house collapsed due to rain, according to an official statement over the weekend.
