NORTH WAZIRISTAN: Three Afghan women were swept away by floodwaters and several people suffered injuries following the downpour-induced flash floods in Tochi River and streams in North Waziristan tribal district on Wednesday.

The residents said the Afghan women had come to the area for medical treatment and had been missing since a torrent swept her away in Saidgi area near the border.

They said several people were injured after being caught up in flash floods.

The residents also said construction machinery and other goods were also washed away by surging water in the Tochi River.

They said the torrential rains caused the river and streams to overflow and thus, damaging agricultural lands across the district.

Thousands stranded as key Mansehra artery blocked by landslides

High flooding was also reported in the Qanungo Algad River, Ketho River and Kurram River.

Rescue 1122 officials told Dawn that they rescued several people from the flooded Tochi River.

They also said heavy downpour caused several houses in Miramshah and Mirali areas to collapse.

Also in the day,a stream in Talash area of Lower Dir district was flooded disrupting vehicular traffic on the main Timergara-Peshawar road for around five hours.

The police diverted the traffic to the Kalpani-Talash Bypass Road but it was blocked.

The stream swelled due to heavy rain leaving hundreds of vehicles stranded on its both sides in Shamshi Khan and Ziarat Talash area for a long time.

Meanwhile, thousands of people travelling between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan, including tourists, remained stranded on Wednesday due to the blocking of the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad Road by heavy landslides in Basal area.

“The tourists and other people travelling in around 225 coaches and vehicles got stranded near the Lolusar Lake as the relevant departments failed to clear the road for almost 24 hours,” Dr Mohammad Abdul Saboor, chief executive officer of the Southern Punjab Cricket Association Multan, told Dawn by telephone from the area.

He said he had come to Kaghan valley along with family after visiting Hunza area in GB.

Hasan Deen of the Moon Restaurants said employees of his hotel were providing food and other goods to the stranded people, including women and children, on a not-for-profit basis.

Mohammad Shakeel, a tourist from Lahore, complained that visitors were stressed out after spending long times in cars and coaches.

He demanded strict action against the relevant authorities over failure to clear the road.

Published in Dawn, July 7th, 2022