Heavy rain caused widespread destruction and buildings collapsed in two different locations.
Heavy rains and strong winds batter the city, destroying walls and exposing structural vulnerabilities. Photo: Online
MIRANSHAH:
Heavy rains wreak havoc in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu, where a building collapse killed six people and injured dozens more on Sunday, while three others died in two rain-related fatal incidents in Punjab, rescuers in the two provinces said.
In Bannu, a heavy downpour caused widespread destruction and buildings collapsed in two different places. Rescuers 1122 said at least six people lost their lives, while more than 30 suffered injuries, several of them seriously.
In one incident, Rescue 1122 said three people were killed at the Shahbaz Azmatkhel mosque in Kotka Ghulam Qadir. The deceased were the guests at the wedding, who had taken refuge on the terrace of the mosque, which collapsed. Several people were trapped under the rubble.
The 1122 rescue teams, assisted by local residents, shifted the injured to the district central hospital and Khalifa Gul Nawaz Hospital. The boyfriend, Khalid, was among the 25 injured, according to initial reports.
The other tragic incident occurred in Warishmi Kalah Mandan, where the roof of a dilapidated house collapsed, killing three children and seriously injuring two others. Rescue officials stated that the house belonged to Sher Muhammad and that his five children were inside the room when the roof collapsed.
Two children were rescued and taken to hospital after receiving first aid, but their two daughters and one son succumbed to their injuries. Bannu Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Faheem visited the district central hospital and authorities to ensure proper treatment of the injured.
The KP PDMA said on Sunday that eight people had died in rain-related incidents in the province since March 25.
Punjab
In Lahore, two people were killed and two others injured when heavy rain and strong winds caused the roof of a house to collapse in the Badami Bagh area in the early hours of Sunday. Emergency crews removed the debris and made sure no one else was trapped.
Another rain-related incident in Bahawalpur district claimed the life of a 70-year-old man. The elderly motorcyclist slipped on a wet road in Tail Wala area of Yazman tehsil and suffered a fatal head injury. The rescuers arrived at the scene and handed the body over to his relatives.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has warned that strong winds, thunderstorms, lightning and heavy rain are likely to continue until Monday (today) in some parts of the country, with some areas at risk of flash flooding.
The northern districts of Balochistan (including Zhob, Musakhel, Sibi, Kohlu, Barkhan, Naseerabad and Loralai) are particularly vulnerable, while local streams in Upper and Central KP and in Azad Kashmir may overflow.
According to PMD, most areas will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies, with scattered rains expected over KP, Upper and Central Punjab, Islamabad, Northeast Balochistan, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir.
Isolated rain is possible in southern Punjab and Sindh, and hail accompanied by strong winds could damage weak infrastructure. In Sindh, cities like Karachi, Hyderabad, Badin, Thatta and Umerkot may experience above-normal winds.
