At least 10 people, including women and children, lost their lives, and dozens were more abandoned stranded when Torrential Monsun rain triggered flash floods and landslides over Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Kaghan Valley and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), confirmed officials on Thursday.
According to Express News, a devastating cloudburst on the outskirts of Muzaffarabad led to the death for five members of the same family, while heavy floods in Neelum Valley’s Ratti Gali Stream left 500 tourists stranded in the base camp. About 50 others were successfully saved by local authorities.
The rain has caused extensive damage in several areas, swept bridges away, cut off road connections and destroy home.
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AJK Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) confirmed that cloudburst in Jugiyan Nala from Nasirabad, Muzaffarabad’s Patikka Tehsil led to the death of five family members.
In Union Council Machhiara, a woman was killed by a falling rock in Danna Dilyar while another woman died and one was injured after being swept away in Pulandri Nala.
In the Jhelum Valley, Flash’s floods destroyed three stores and a flour mill in fool Dajiyan Nala, according to SDMA officials. In the Poonch district, three individuals were stranded in Chhatr Nala saved safely.
In Bagh district, almost 400 tourists were evacuated after their vehicle was swept away by flooding water. In addition, landslides have blocked several key arteries, including Lohar Gali Road connecting AJK with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, and Hattian Bala Road near Bani Hafiz in Jhelum Valley.
The road that connects Leepa Valley via Dudhpura has been made unavailable due to landslides, like Hajira-Abbaspur Road in the Poonch District. In Neelum Valley, heavy rainfall left in Ratti Gali Nala dozens of tourists; About 50 were probably moved to Duarian Kalas, while 500 remains protected in the base camp, where the authorities have arranged free accommodation and food.
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A stranded vehicle was regained, but sections of Ratti Gali Road remain blocked and two connecting bridges in Nala Luwat were washed away by flood water.
In Nathia Galis Tajwal, three girls were swept away by rising waters. Two were rescued while found dead.
In the GB Ghizer district, five people were swept away by flash floods in the Khalti area. Officials said the bodies of a woman and a child have been recovered while the search continues for the remaining three.
In the Ghizer district, six homes were destroyed by floods in Khalti, and a wave of water in Chitorkhand and Dain Nalas partially hindered the Ashkuman River and raised fears of a potential violation. As a caution, the residents of low -lying areas have been moved to safer locations.
In the Ghande district of Baltistan, the last bridge connecting Toro Goma, a remote village near Siachen Glacier, was swept away and cut off land access. Masho Broome subdivision has also been threatened by floods, while flooding water in Ghorsey damaged hundreds of canal of agricultural land and felled trees.
In the village of Kazmi, all residents were moved to tent settlements after the rising water levels forced authorities to evacuate the area.
Disadruction of disaster management services across affected regions remains on high alarm as more rain is expected in the upper parts of the country. Emergency Response teams continue rescue operations, while engineers work to reopen blocked roads and restore communication to cut off areas.
Officials have called on the public to avoid unnecessary trips to valleys at high risk and follow all warnings issued by local authorities.
