CHITRAL: At least 30 people were killed as torrential rains lashed Chitral, causing flash flooding in the district late on Saturday, Chitral district nazim Maghfirat Shah confirmed Sunday.

"Rescuers have recovered 16 bodies so far," Shah said, adding that 17 people were injured during the rains and subsequent flooding.

District administration, Pakistan Army troops and locals are taking part in rescue and relief operations in the affected areas.

Inter-Services Public Relations confirmed that army helicopters rescued at least four people ─ two with critical head injuries ─ from Orsoon village and transported them to District Headquarters Hospital, Chitral. Troops also provided food, tents and medical aid to affectees in the village.

An evacuation operation is ongoing, ISPR said, adding that a search operation for missing people was underway.

Some locals claimed that the administration had failed to launch an effective rescue operation and the affectees are searching for missing family members all on their own.

A local resident, Sajid, told DawnNews over the telephone that the administration had failed to issue early warnings because of which residents of vulnerable localities could not manage to evacuate the areas prior to the floods. "We are still waiting for rescue teams to evacuate the area."

One of the reasons behind the delayed response was that the rains had destroyed the area’s communication system, Deputy Commissioner Chitral Usama Waraich said, adding that it was too early to determine the degree of damage.

"There was panic in the area because people were running as the floods compelled hundreds of residents to leave their homes," Waraich said.

A Drosh police official said police had received reports of flooding between 9:30 and 10:00pm on Saturday night, adding, "We faced difficulties during the rescue operation due to darkness and heavy rain."

The flash floods washed away a mosque and 35 houses completely, while 47 houses were partially damaged in Orsoon, which borders Afghanistan, the Pakistan Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said.

With additional reporting by Mateen Haider.