Bahawalnagar:
At least nine people died when a rescue boat hijacked during flood efforts in southern Punjab, authorities said on Friday when the Sutlej River’s worst flood of 40 years continued to destroy large areas that submerged hundreds of villages and displaced more than 150,000 people.
According to Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), the accident found Thursday in a village near Multan. The statement said the boat had saved 24 people from flooded villages when it overturned, with 15 survivors later pulled from the water.
Local authorities in Minchinabad Tehsil said a rescue 1122 -boat that carries 22 people, including staff, enclosed near Mamoonka Basti. They said the dead included two young men, Adnan and Khizar, who were swept away by powerful streams; Their bodies were recovered one day later.
Officials confirmed that the boat with a maximum capacity of 15 was overloaded after passengers forced their way on board despite repeated warnings transporting plastic containers filled with 400 liters of milk. It hijacked only 15-20 meters from land.
Further tragedies were reported in Chishtian, where 38-year-old Muhammad Hussain and 12-year-old Muhammad Asad drowned in separate events. Both bodies were later picked up by Rescue 1122 teams.
Rescue officials said evacuations remain difficult as many villagers refuse to leave without their pets – cows, goats and other animals that are central to their livelihood – often convincing authorities to perform reluctant removal.
“The rescue work in the region is tough because people do not cooperate,” noted PDMA. The scope of flood has been disastrous, triggered by intense monsoon rain and raised rivers, the officials added.
Deluge has flooded a 154 km. The district authorities estimate about 150,000 people have become homeless in the area.
Across Punjab, officials said over 4,500 villages have been immersed since the end of August, which affected more than 4.4 million people. At least 2.4 million have so far been evacuated. Since the end of June, floods have killed 946 people nationwide and destroyed large crops.
Local residents accused the authorities of not having taken preventative measures and left thousands of disaster. Survivors remain under the open sky and await urgent relief and government attention as Sutlej flooding increasingly takes the form of a humanitarian crisis.
(With input from Reuters)
