Pakistan monsoon rains, flash floods kill 72

AP :

At least 72 people have been killed and over 130 injured in Pakistan following ten days of heavy monsoon rains and flash floods, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and local officials said on Monday.

The deaths, recorded since June 26, were reported from various parts of the country, including the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, eastern Punjab, southern Sindh, and southwestern Balochistan provinces.

The NDMA has urged local officials to remain on high alert and advised tourists to avoid visiting flood-affected areas, warning that continued rainfall could block highways and trigger further flash floods.

Emergency services have been operating at maximum capacity since last month, following an incident in which 17 tourists from the same family were swept away by the Swat River in the northwest. Four of them were rescued, while the bodies of the remaining 13 were later recovered.

Videos circulating online showed members of the family stranded on a rooftop, pleading for help. The footage sparked widespread outrage and accusations of a slow response by emergency crews.

Authorities have warned that a repeat of the extreme weather seen during the 2022 floods cannot be ruled out. At the time, heavy rains inundated nearly a third of Pakistan, killing 1,737 people.