MULTAN, Aug 2: Two persons were reportedly swept away by gushing water of hill torrents in Vehoa villages in Taunsa Sharif tehsil, some 200kms from here, on Saturday.

Irrigation department signal operator Ramzan said that flow of 35,000 cusecs of water gushed through Darra Vohoa.

PML-N’s Taunsa tehsil president Khawaja Zeeshan said that three people were rescued by the local people.

He said that hill torrents affected at least 30,000 people residing in villages on the foot of the Suleiman Range. A large number of houses have been demolished and the people stranded there are looking for their evacuation.

Aside from this, standing crops on hundreds of acres have also been badly damaged.

The worst-affected villages are: Bait Nutkani, Basti Moga, Basti Gamb, Basti Kulachi, Bait Dawood, Basti Churkin, Basti Khokhar, Basti Mithwani, Basti Mallha, Daulatwala and Basti Dakhran.

Dera Ghazi Khan DCO Capt Asadullah (retired) and Taunsa Sharif tehsil nazim Khawaja Salahuddin were unavailable for comments as both of them had powered off their cell phones.

Meanwhile, hill torrents also played havoc in vast areas of Pachhad in Rajanpur.

A large number of mud houses collapsed in Bashir Nagar while cotton crop on thousands of acre was also destroyed.

Two siphons of Miranpur and Kachhi Wala at Dajal Canal were also damaged. The water entered houses of katchi abadi in Hajipura having a population of about 25,000 people.

The worst-hit villages were: Toaar, Hajipur, Bashir Nagar, Shaukat Nagar, Bakharpur, Naushehra Gharbi, Purana Nawan Sheher and Mudd Rana Shaukat.

The downstream areas of Rojhan tehsil, including Chak Mudd No 1, 2, 3, Chak Dilbar, Tariqabad, Safdarabad, Saleemabad, Chak Jadeed, Mutafariq Mazari, Mushtarqa Mazari and other villages were badly affected by flashfloods.

Rajanpur DCO Aslam Janjua said a helicopter was sent to the affected area, but it had to return from the midway because of heavy rain. He said the helicopter would be sent there on Sunday morning for the relief and rescue work.

He said the rescue teams of district administration and police had already been dispatched to the affected areas while arrangements had been made in schools here to provide shelter to the marooned people.

Mr Janjua said teams of doctors had also been constituted to provide treatment facilities to the displaced people. He said that the Dajal Canal had also been closed

A revenue department official, requesting anonymity, said close to 35,000 people were badly affected only in Rojhan tehsil.

He said nominal relief work could be started in affected areas while rescue teams were facing difficulties due to incessant rain, non-availability of medicines, vaccines and eatable items.

The official said a helicopter was arranged only for the rescue of Chinese company’s employees working on Khichi Canal while the local people were left helpless.

He claimed that water had reached Railway Road, Rojhan, and would enter the city at any moment.