ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI: Massive, sudden downpours of rain known as cloudbursts have struck Pakistan and India during this monsoon season, killing hundreds of people in the flash floods and landslides they have triggered. WHAT ARE CLOUDBURSTS AND WHY DO THEY OCCUR? By a widely accepted definition, a cloudburst means more than 100 mm (4 inches) of rainfall in one hour, over a small area. This year, the monsoon, which originates in the Bay of Bengal and then sweeps westwards across northern India to Pakistan every summer, has brought deadly cloudbursts.

ISLAMABAD: Cloudbursts are causing chaos in mountainous parts of India and Pakistan, with tremendous amounts of rain falling in a short period of time over a concentrated area.…

ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI: Massive, sudden downpours of rain known as cloudbursts have struck Pakistan and India during this monsoon season, killing hundreds of people in the flash…