Fresh rain spell kills 13 in northwestern Pakistan

KARACHI, Pakistan

At least 13 people were killed and dozens injured as a fresh spell of monsoon rains triggered flash floods and landslides in northern Pakistan on Sunday, raising the death toll to over 460 in less than two weeks, authorities and local media reported.

Fresh casualties were reported from different districts of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, which remained the hardest-hit during the ongoing monsoon spell, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said.

At least eight casualties were reported from Dera Ismail Khan over the past 24 hours, whereas three children were killed when the roof of their home collapsed in remote Dir district, which sits near the Afghanistan border, the rescue officials said.

At least 40 people were injured in Dera Ismail Khan as massive rains flanked by gusty winds hit the district.

According to the latest figures issued by the PDMA, some 406 people have been killed across KP province since Aug. 15; of them, 337 were killed in the Buner district, which bore the main impact of massive rains and floods.

More than 60 people have also been killed in the southern Sindh and southwestern Balochistan provinces, northern Gilgit-Baltistan, and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

A fresh rain spell also struck parts of Gilgit-Baltistan on Sunday, triggering landslides and blocking roads.

According to the National Disaster Management Authority, around 800 people have been killed in rain- and flood-related accidents across the country since late June.

The meteorological department has forecast more rains in several parts of northwestern and northeastern Pakistan over the next 24 to 48 hours.