Houses collapse

Heavy rain in Pakistan claims dozens of lives

(Bild: APA/AFP)

At least 26 people have been killed and more than 50 injured in Pakistan following unusually heavy rainfall. This was announced by disaster control authorities in the affected provinces on Sunday.

The heavy rainfall swept across the country within 48 hours, causing houses to collapse and triggering landslides, particularly in the north-west. At the same time, snow fell in other areas. The meteorological department spoke of unusually heavy rainfall for the time of year.

In the north-western province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa near the Afghan border alone, 21 people have died in the past 48 hours. In the south-western province of Balochistan, a further five people have died. On Wednesday, authorities in Balochistan evacuated around ten thousand residents of a port city after heavy rainfall. 

Extreme weather events on the rise
Pakistan has been experiencing an increase in extreme weather events for some time. In 2022, there were record floods during the monsoon season, which at times flooded a third of the South Asian country. Pakistan is one of the countries most affected by climate change, but has hardly contributed to global emissions itself.