Pakistan: Flash floods ravage Buner, Swat; 60% families lose livelihoods

Islamabad [Pakistan] August 23 (ANI): A recent evaluation conducted by the humanitarian organisation Islamic Relief indicates that 60 per cent of families in the severely affected regions of Buner and Swat have experienced a loss of their livelihoods due to flash floods, alongside significant destruction of homes and agricultural land, as reported by Dawn.

The emergency response team from Islamic Relief is actively distributing food and water in the area, and their assessment reveals that 73 percent of residences are either destroyed or partially damaged; 60 percent of individuals in Buner and 53 percent in Swat can no longer provide for their families; 80 percent of the farmland in Buner has suffered damage; and almost half of the livestock has died or been swept away, according to the Dawn report.

The assessment also points out that 40 per cent of households are already reporting occurrences of diarrhoea, with water-borne illnesses spreading due to contamination from the bodies of victims and livestock, along with the destruction of sanitation facilities.

Raza Narejo, the acting country director of Islamic Relief Pakistan, stated, "While the flood waters are now receding, the consequences are significant and will impact the community for an extended period. The most vulnerable populations have seen their jobs and incomes devastated almost instantly, with 60 per cent of workers in the Buner district now unable to support themselves following the floods," as noted by Dawn.

Pakistan's National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has warned of heavy rainfall and possible flooding in various regions of the country between August 23 and August 30, as reported by Geo News.

The NDMA's advisory forecasts that Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will experience scattered showers and thunderstorms. The authority warned that localised heavy rains could lead to flash floods, landslides, and glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) in mountainous areas.

Districts including Chitral, Dir, Swat, Shangla, Mansehra, Battagram, Abbottabad, Malakand, Peshawar, Charsadda, Nowshera, Mardan, Tank, Bannu and Lakki Marwat are likely to be affected, as per Geo News. (ANI)

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