Flash floods, storms kill over 200 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab: Prime Minister orders Navy to move some units for help

Over 200 people have been killed by flash floods and bad weather, with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces bearing the brunt of the storms, officials said on Thursday. Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani telephoned Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan Hoti, twice and expressed his grief over the loss of life and property, caused by heavy rains and flash floods.
During the second telephonic contact, the prime minister told the KP Chief Minister that since the government has limited resources that's why he has ordered the Pakistan Navy to move some of its units for immediate help to the effected province.
The current wave of flash floods caused by torrential and incessant rains for the past three days has caused deaths, washing of hundreds of mud houses in rural areas and displacement of tens of thousand people in several districts of KP. Deaths and widespread destruction of property has been reported in Peshawar, Nowshera, Mardan, Charsadda, Swabi and parts of Punjab. In Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, storms and flash floods caused by heavy monsoon rains killed nearly 100 people and left several thousands stranded.
About 95 people were killed in flash floods in the Balochistan last week, which also uprooted nearly 100,000 people. Most of the most recent casualties were in the picturesque Swat valley where torrential rains caused the Swat river to burst its bank.
"The river wreaked havoc in Behrain, where rising water from the river washed away many houses and hotels around the river bank," a flood control official, Naeem Akhtar, told Reuters, referring to a town in the valley. Akhtar said 40 people have been killed in the past 24 hours by flooding across Swat while another 30 were killed by lightning and collapsed houses in the Shangla town on Thursday.
Several thousand people in Swat and other parts of the provinces were either stranded or forced from their homes, officials said. Troops evacuated about 300 people from a village encircled by floodwaters in Tank. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani instructed the Chairman NDMA to provide relief to the affected population in co-ordination with Provincial Government.
Gilani also rang up the CDA Chairman and expressed concern over choked drainage system in different parts of the federal capital. He ordered that water accumulated in Islamabad be drained. The Prime Minister ordered that CDA teams should be seen in all parts of the city to rectify the drainage system in the city.
He directed that CDA staff should co-ordinate with traffic police to ensure that there were no traffic jams in and around the city because of rainwater. The Prime Minister asked the PPP workers from across the country to come forward and help the people affected by rains and floods.
Co-Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party President Asif Ali Zardari has expressed profound grief over the loss of lives and property due to floods in Khyber Pukhtunkhuwa as well as in some other parts of the country. The President has been grieved to learn about the loss of lives and damage to property due to floods particularly in the Khyber Pukhtunkhuwa, Spokesperson Farhatullah Babar said.
The President who has been in touch with relevant authorities monitoring the floods has called for reports on the steps already taken and those proposed to be taken to alleviate sufferings of the flood affected people. The Presidency also took serious note of the reports that some people were marooned in floodwaters and had been complaining about inadequacy of relief measures, and has also asked the provincial government and other relevant agencies to immediately look into these reports and redress grievances of the victims.
The Co-Chairman also directed the party organisations to be vigilant and organise rescue and relief missions and set up emergency medical and relief centres to help alleviate sufferings of the flood affected people. The President also asked senior party leadership to personally monitor the situation and submit reports to him.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa received between 250mm and 300mm of rain in the past 36 hours - the highest figure recorded in the last 35 years, the Meteorological Department Commissioner Qamar Zaman told Reuters. "We expect more rains in the next 24 hours focused on Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, but by Friday afternoon the intensity will go away."
Meanwhile, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has urged the citizens to adopt flood precautionary measures in order to minimise loss of property and lives during flood situations. The citizens in flood prone areas must monitor weather conditions and arrange food items, a transistor radio, flashlight with spare batteries and emergency equipment for use in the event of flooding.
According to the NDMA guidelines, people must move to the higher and safer areas in the event of early warning, store livestock feed and supplies above expected water levels and know evacuation routes to be used in emergency. During flood, the citizens must avoid areas subject to sudden flooding, not cross a stream where water is above knees, not try to drive over a flooded road and stay away from drains and ditches.
While after flood, NDMA warned them to avoid contact with electric poles, walls damaged during the flood, not to eat fresh food that has come in contact with flood waters, boil drinking water before use and report broken gas, electrical and water lines immediately. The authority warned not to handle electrical equipment in wet areas and cooperate with the local officials and respond to requests for assistance from local police, fire-fighters and relief workers.