Islamabad: Pakistan’s Prime Minister’s Coordinator for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Affairs, Ikhtiar Wali Khan, has voiced deep concern that recent flash floods in the province may have claimed up to 1,000 lives, ARY News reported.
Wali, who personally visited the affected areas, described widespread devastation. “Entire villages have been wiped out. In Buner’s Chagharzi area, destruction is massive, while the village of Bashoni has vanished entirely,” he said. “Some rocks carried by the floodwaters were larger than trucks. Homes along riverbanks have disappeared, and entire families have been swept away without a trace.”
He noted that official counts only reflect bodies recovered in hospitals—around 300 so far—but many more victims remain unreported. Wali described the situation as a human tragedy, warning that deaths in Dir alone could exceed 1,000, with over a thousand people still missing. “Mass burials are underway. I returned from Buner with a heavy heart after witnessing the disaster firsthand,” he added.
According to Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), at least 657 people—392 men, 171 children, and 94 women—have died in rain-related incidents across the country since June 26, while 929 others were injured, including 437 men, 256 children, and 236 women.
The NDMA attributed the casualties to torrential monsoon rains, flash floods, and related hazards, and said it is working with provincial authorities to intensify relief and rescue efforts in the hardest-hit areas.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has suffered the greatest losses, with 390 deaths—288 men, 59 children, and 43 women—and 245 injured, including 161 men, 45 children, and 39 women, according to ARY News.
