ISLAMABAD: Pakistan said on Wednesday floods had killed at least 43 people in the last 10 days and displaced over 1.3 million in the breadbasket Punjab province, as swollen rivers carried some of the heaviest volumes in years and officials warned the threat of further inundations remained.
Authorities said more than 3.6 million people had been affected across 3,363 villages after days of heavy monsoon rains and dam releases from upstream India. Nearly 1.29 million people had been moved to safer areas, with hundreds of relief camps set up across inundated districts.
Nationwide, rains, floods and landslides have killed over 880 people since late June, reviving memories of Pakistan’s catastrophic 2022 deluges when a third of the country was submerged, 30 million displaced and losses topped $35 billion.
“Severe flooding in the Ravi, Sutlej and Chenab rivers has affected more than 3.63 million people across 3,363 villages,” Punjab Relief Commissioner Nabeel Javed said in a statement.
“Around 1.29 million people trapped in floodwaters have been moved to safe places. Forty-three citizens have died in the recent flooding.”
