2024 Afghanistan–Pakistan floods

Last updated

2024 Afghanistan–Pakistan floods
Duration6 March 2024 - ongoing
Location Afghanistan, Pakistan
CauseHeavy rainfall, flash floods
Deaths637+ [lower-alpha 1]
Non-fatal injuries1,748+ [lower-alpha 2]

Since 6 March 2024, unseasonably heavy rains and resultant flash flooding in Afghanistan and Pakistan killed over 600 people, and injured many more. [6] [7] [ failed verification ] This extensively damaged infrastructure and agriculture. [7] [8] [9]

Contents

Damage and casualties

Afghanistan

During floods in April, over 100 people died [1] and 54 were injured due to heavy rains and floods in 23 provinces. At least 2,134 houses were destroyed and 10,789 livestock were killed. [10] The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Afghanistan reported that heavy rains and floods affected more than 25,000 families [1] and damaged nearly 1,000 houses. [11] [12] Department spokesman Janan Sayeq reported that most casualties occurred due to roof collapses. Over 600 km (370 mi) of road and 9,271 hectares (22,910 acres) of agricultural land were flooded. [10] [13] [14]

The Afghan World Food Program office said further flooding on 10-11 May killed over 330 people. [2] The refugee ministry said that the floods also injured 1,600 others. [15] In Baghlan Province, 300 died, 100 others were injured, 1,000 houses were destroyed and many more damaged. [16] In Baghlani Jadid District, 100 people were killed and 1,500 houses sustained damage. [17] There were also 2,042 damaged houses in Burka District. [18]

Another 20 people died and 80 more were injured in Takhar Province, [19] while another three were killed in Herat Province. [20] The provinces of Badakhshan and Ghor were also affected. [21] Floods continued on 17 May, killing 50 people in Ghor Province and another 18 in Faryab. [22] Over 2,000 houses were destroyed, 4,000 others were damaged and 2,000 shops were submerged by floodwater in Chaghcharan alone. [3]

Pakistan

On March 6, heavy rains caused a landslide in Swat District, killing over 40 people. [4]

Throughout April, a further 99 people, including 44 children, were killed and 94 were injured in additional floods, which damaged over 3,500 houses and 464 schools. [5] The most affected province was Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where 64 deaths were recorded, followed by Punjab with 21 deaths and Balochistan with 15 deaths. [5] Torrential rains caused floods and power outages in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Punjab and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. [8] A majority of the deaths were caused by lightning killing farmers harvesting wheat crops, and rains causing homes to collapse. Streets in several cities were flooded. Rainfall also lashed Islamabad. [23] Authorities declared a state of emergency in Balochistan. [24] [14]

Causes

The extreme rainfall was in stark contrast to the unusually dry winter. The resulting dry soil struggled to absorb the rain, which exacerbated the flooding. Some experts cited climate change as the cause. [7] [25]

Response and recovery

Pakistan's National Disaster Management Authority advised emergency services to be on high alert, as another round of heavy rains was expected. The confirmed dead include 25 children, 12 men and nine women, while the injured include 11 women, 33 men and 16 children. [8] The Pakistan Meteorological Department predicted more intermittent rain in all four provinces. The ongoing rains with possible flooding in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were thought to have continued until 22 April. [26]

Related Research Articles

1992 was a year mixed with euphoria and tragedy for Pakistan. While Pakistan won the finals of the Cricket World Cup, thousands died in the flooding that occurred in the northern regions of Pakistan as a result of torrential rains swelling the Indus river. The Nawaz government inaugurated a few projects in the province of Punjab towards the betterment of road networks and ordered a military operation in the province of Sindh to counter the growing language riots and ethnic tension.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Climate of Pakistan</span> Overview of climate of Pakistan

Pakistan's climate varies from a continental type of climate in the north, a mountainous dry climate in the west (Baluchistan), a wet climate in the East (Punjab) an arid climate in the Thar Desert, to a tropical climate in the southeast (Sindh), characterized by extreme variations in temperature, both seasonally and daily, because it is located on a great landmass barely north of the Tropic of Cancer.

The 2012 Pakistan floods began in early September 2012, resulting from heavy monsoon rains in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Upper Sindh, Southern Punjab and Balochistan regions of Pakistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Pakistan–Afghanistan floods</span>

In August 2013, Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan experienced heavy rain that led to flash flooding. More than 180 died as a result of the floods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Pakistan tornado</span>

On the night of 26 April 2015, a severe storm hit areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, causing considerable damage in the cities of Peshawar, Nowshera, and Charsadda. The storm featured heavy rains accompanied by hail and high-speed winds of over 120 kilometers per hour. As a result of the storm's damaging effects, 45 people were killed and over 200 were wounded.

Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad is a codename of a combined military operation by the Pakistani military in support of local law enforcement agencies to disarm and eliminate the terrorist sleeper cells across all states of Pakistan, started on 22 February 2017. The operation is aimed to eliminate the threat of terrorism, and consolidating the gains of Operation Zarb-e-Azb which was launched in 2014 as a joint military offensive. It is further aimed at ensuring the security of Pakistan's borders. The operation is ongoing active participation from Pakistan Army, Pakistan Air Force, Pakistan Navy, Pakistan Police and other Warfare and Civil Armed Forces managed under the Government of Pakistan. More than 375,000 operations have been carried out against terrorists so far. This operation has been mostly acknowledged after Operation Zarb e Azb.

From February to April 2019, widespread flash flooding affected large parts of Pakistan, most severely in Balochistan, KPK, Punjab, and other provinces. Pakistan has been hit by three major waves of rain and flooding over the course of more than one month. The first wave of rain began on 20 February, leading to flooding in to Khyber and Balochistan, therefore many villages and several cities have been evacuated, and more than 1,500 families has been rescued alone in Balochistan and many in other states. The 20 February rain and thunderstorms caused flash floods in the Lasbela area. The main areas affected were Turbat, Tump, Nasirabad and Dasht where 300 people were displaced due to the flood. These people were then moved to camps established by the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA). Casualties have came mostly due to roof collapsing amid heavy rains and flash flooding. Khyber Pakhtunwkha has witnessed the most deaths till now, 40, alongside Balochsitan has faced 26 casualties with more than 9 in Punjab and other places. Due to rain, flood and storm casualties are increasing.

In mid-March 2019, monsoonal downpours caused widespread flooding and landslides across South Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Pakistan Floods</span> Natural disaster in Pakistan

In 2016 Pakistan experienced higher rainfall than normal (10-20%), especially in the pre-monsoon season. Heavy monsoon rains are common in the region. This led to multiple periods of flooding, landslides, and damage particularly in Northern Pakistan. The Swat River overflowed and multiple landslides occurred around Pakistan including in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu, and Kashmir.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Afghanistan floods</span> Disaster in Afghanistan

In May 2022, floods affected several parts of Afghanistan, killing 429 people. It was later reported the 182 people died due to flooding in August, as well as 40 people in July and 19 in June. From June to August, just as the country was recovering from an earthquake in Khost Province, floods hit again, killing 19 in June, 39 in July, and 182 others in August.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 South Asian floods</span>

From January to October 2022, excessive rainfall and widespread monsoon flooding occurred in the South Asian countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. It has become the region's deadliest floods since 2020, with over 3,700 people dead.

The events listed below are both anticipated and scheduled for the year 2023 in Pakistan.

The 2023 Pakistan floods occurred from March to July of 2023, caused by monsoon rains which returned to Pakistan after nine months after the 2022 Pakistan floods. Floods worsened at the end of June due to upcoming monsoon rains. At least 159 people were killed, including many children.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2023 South Asian floods</span>

Flooding affected parts of South Asia since March of 2023, killing many and destroying buildings.

The events listed below are both anticipated and scheduled for the year 2024 in Pakistan.

Events in the year 2024 in Afghanistan.

Since 29 February 2024, flooding affected various regions across the country, including Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Gilgit-Baltistan. At least 40 people were killed and 62 injured in the floods. Floods caused by heavy rains caused widespread destruction, disrupting normal life and damaging infrastructure. The government declared a state of emergency in several areas, and relief operations were launched by various agencies, including the Pakistan Navy, Pakistan Army, and the Frontier Corps.

References

Notes

  1. ↑ 498+ in Afghanistan 139 in Pakistan
    • 40 in March [4]
    • 99 in April [5]
  2. ↑ 1,654+ in Afghanistan
    • 54 in April
    • 1,600+ in May
    94 in Pakistan

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 "Another 29 Killed In Afghanistan Rains". Channels TV. 11 May 2024. Archived from the original on 20 April 2024. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Death toll from Afghanistan's floods exceeds 330". Mehr News Agency. 11 May 2024. Archived from the original on 11 May 2024. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  3. 1 2 "At least 50 killed in heavy rains, floods in Afghanistan's Ghor province". Al Jazeera. 18 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  4. 1 2 "Northwestern Pakistan landslide: More than 40 killed in heavy rain and snowfall". Microsoft Start . 6 March 2024. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 OCHA (22 April 2024). "Pakistan: Flash Floods Flash Update No.2 (as of 21 April 2024)". ReliefWeb. Archived from the original on 22 April 2024. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  6. ↑ "Heavy rains and floods kill over 100 across Pakistan and Afghanistan". Voice of America. 16 April 2024. Archived from the original on 20 April 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
  7. 1 2 3 "Weather tracker: rains bring deadly flash floods to Afghanistan and Pakistan". The Guardian. 19 April 2024. Archived from the original on 20 April 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
  8. 1 2 3 "Massive rains, flash floods kill nearly 100 in Pakistan". The Express Tribune. 20 April 2024. Archived from the original on 20 April 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
  9. ↑ "Torrential rains claim 3 more lives in KP; death toll rises to 46". 20 April 2024.
  10. 1 2 "Afghanistan floods death toll climbs to 90". Kuwait News Agency. 23 April 2024. Archived from the original on 9 May 2024. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
  11. ↑ "MSN". MSN .
  12. ↑ "More than 100 killed across Pakistan and Afghanistan as flash floods and heavy rains sweep the region". Archived from the original on 18 April 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
  13. ↑ "Dozens killed in Afghanistan as heavy rains set off flash floods". Al Jazeera. 14 April 2024. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  14. 1 2 "Hundreds killed as storms lash Pakistan and Afghanistan". Al Jazeera. 16 April 2024. Archived from the original on 17 April 2024. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  15. ↑ "Afghanistan floods devastate villages, killing 315". Deccan Herald . Reuters. 12 May 2024. Archived from the original on 12 May 2024. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  16. ↑ "Afghanistan floods leave more than 300 dead, thousands homeless, UN says". France 24. 11 May 2024. Archived from the original on 11 May 2024. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  17. ↑ "Over 200 Dead In Afghanistan Flash Floods In A Single Day". NDTV. 11 May 2024. Archived from the original on 11 May 2024. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  18. ↑ UNOSAT (16 May 2024). "Mudflow impact in Burka District, Baghlan Province, Afghanistan as of 14 May 2024 - Imagery Analysis: 14/05/2024 Published 16/05/2024 V2". ReliefWeb . Retrieved 17 May 2024.
  19. ↑ "Afghanistan: Flash floods in Takhar kill 20, injure 80". Amu TV. 11 May 2024. Archived from the original on 11 May 2024. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  20. ↑ "Afghanistan: Floods in Herat kill three, including a child". Amu TV. 11 May 2024. Archived from the original on 11 May 2024. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  21. ↑ "Flash floods kill hundreds in Afghanistan, Taliban says". Express & Star . 11 May 2024. Archived from the original on 11 May 2024. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  22. ↑ "Flash floods due to unusually heavy seasonal rains kill at least 68 people in Afghanistan". Associated Press. 18 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  23. ↑ "Lightning, rains kill 36 people in Pakistan". NPR. 15 April 2024. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  24. ↑ "Lightning, rains kill 49 in Pakistan as authorities declare a state of emergency in the southwest". AP. 16 April 2024. Archived from the original on 17 April 2024. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  25. ↑ "MSN". MSN .
  26. ↑ "Pakistan Flooding, Storms Kill Dozens". Archived from the original on 19 April 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
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