Rescue teams in northwest Pakistan recovered 63 more bodies from villages buried under landslides and flash floods, raising the death toll from rain-related disasters to at least 220, officials confirmed on Saturday.
Since June 2, heavy monsoon rains—described as unusually intense and linked to climate change—have triggered floods and mudslides that have now killed around 541 people nationwide, according to the National Disaster Management Authority.
Communities swept away
The province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been one of the worst hit, with torrents of water destroying homes and sweeping away families. In Buner district, emergency service spokesman Mohammad Suhail said cloudbursts on Friday led to widespread devastation. Dozens of homes were flattened, leaving survivors searching desperately for loved ones.
Kashif Qayyum, deputy commissioner in Buner, said the hardest-hit villages were Pir Baba and Malik Pura, where most of Friday’s fatalities were reported.
Mohammad Khan, a 53-year-old resident of Pir Baba, recalled how sudden the disaster was: “We do not know from where the floodwater came, but it came so fast that many could not leave their homes.”
Victims before reaching hospitals
Medical teams struggled to save lives as the injured poured in. Dr. Mohammad Tariq, working at a government hospital in Buner, said most victims did not make it in time. “Many among the dead were children and men, while women were away in the hills collecting firewood and grazing cattle,” he explained.
The provincial disaster management authority reported that at least 351 deaths have occurred this week alone across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan.
Wider impact across the region
Across the border, Indian-controlled Kashmir is also reeling from deadly floods that have forced hundreds from their homes. Such cloudbursts are becoming more common in the Himalayas and northern Pakistan, with climate experts warning that global warming is intensifying the risks.
Pakistani officials added that since Thursday, more than 3,500 tourists stranded in flood-hit areas have been evacuated. Despite repeated government warnings, many visitors had continued traveling to northern regions, heightening the dangers.
The latest tragedy has revived memories of Pakistan’s catastrophic 2022 monsoon season, when unprecedented flooding killed more than 1,700 people and caused damages estimated at $40 billion.
