PESHAWAR: Four persons, including two minor girls, were killed and eight others injured in separate incidents in various parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as another spell of heavy rain started lashing the province on Friday.

A Khal police station official said a house collapsed in Toormang area of Lower Dir due to heavy rain, killing an 11-year-old girl. The deceased was staying as guest in the house.

Separately, Amir Mohammad, a resident of Toormang, also informed the Khall police his son, Hidayatullah had been missing for last three days. He said his son had gone to a nearby stream to collect firewood on Tuesday, but did not return. He said it seemed his son had drowned in the flooded stream.

Besides, heavy rain continued to lash Upper and Lower Dir districts, disrupting traffic on the main Timergara-Peshawar Road on Friday evening due to flood in Shamshi Khan Khwar. The traffic was diverted to the Talash Bypass Road, but it also remained blocked due to mud brought on by flash floods.

Landslide blocks MNJ Road, stranding passengers for hours

Meanwhile, Lower Dir deputy commissioner Wasil Khan imposed ban on collection of firewood and gathering on the banks of Panjkora River.

Separately, a woman was injured in roof collapse incident in Hasilkhan Jafer area of Bannu district as light rain continued to lash Lakki Marwat and Bannu on Thursday.

A team of Rescue 1122 rushed to the locality and shifted the woman to the District Headquarters Hospital.

A rescue official told Dawn that a minor girl was killed and a woman was injured in a roof collapse incident in Khyber tribal district.

Similarly, another person died and three others injured in Bajaur district.

Two persons were injured in roof collapse incident in Charsadda.

Heavy rain continued to batter the provincial capital on Friday, inundating roads and low-lying areas.

Water and Sanitation Services Peshawar, in a statement said heavy rain led to increased pressure on city’s drainage system. It said due to limited capacity, water overflowed drains and accumulated on roads.

The civic agency said its staff was working round the clock to open drains clogged with polythene bags and solid waste and was monitoring the hotspots across the city.

Peshawar Electric Supply Company, in a statement said the rain affected power supply in several parts of the province.

It said 124 feeders tripped due to heavy rains, including 48 in Peshawar, 22 in Khyber and 12 in Swat circles. The power utility said its staff was working to restore power supply to the affected areas.

A landslide triggered by heavy downpour on Friday blocked the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad Road to traffic in Kawai area of Kaghan Valley.

Heavy boulders detached from a mountain rolled down on the road, blocking it to traffic.

A local told reporters that following the landslide traffic remained blocked, stranding passengers for over two hours.

The rain, which started earlier this week, continued to lash Mansehra, Torghar, Kolai-Palas, Upper Kohistan and Lower Kohistan, swelling Kunhar, Indus and Siren rivers.

Residents living along the riverbanks were directed to move to safer places.

The continued rains caused severe cold in the Hazara division.

The Met Department said during past 24 hours provincial capital received 44mm of rain, Cherat 70mm, Malam Jabba 58mm, Upper Dir 49mm, Lower Dir 34mm, Takht Bhai 35mm, Drosh, Dera Ismail Khan 24mm, Patan 15mm, Parachinar 13mm, Bannu 12mm and Balakot 8mm of rain.

Besides, the Met department also predicted more rain with snowfall over mountains in Chitral, Dir, Swat, Abbottabad, Mansehra, Haripur, Kohistan, Shangla, Buner, Malakand, Bajaur, Mohmand, Khyber, Peshawar, Charsadda, Nowshera, Swabi, Mardan, Kurram, Kohat, Lakki Marwat, Bannu, Waziristan, Tank, Karak and Dera Ismail Khan on Friday night and Saturday.

On the other hand, Provincial Disaster Management Authority said on Friday the rain spell from April 12-18 resulted into deaths of 36 persons and injuries to 46 others.

PDMA said 20 of the deceased were children.

Similarly, a total of 2,391 houses were damaged.

In Swat, a woman was electrocuted in Ghwari Masta area of Fizagat as intermittent rain persisted throughout the day. She was identified as Malia. The woman got an electric shock while putting fodder to cattle in her house. She was immediately transported to Saidu Sharif Hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.

Snowfall also lashed the higher places.

Due to rise in water level in the Swat River and streams, deputy commissioner Dr Mohammad Qasim Khan banned people from going near them.

Published in Dawn, April 20th, 2024