LAHORE: Pakistani authorities have evacuated nearly half a million people stranded by severe flooding in eastern Punjab province after days of heavy monsoon rain.
Three transboundary rivers cutting through Punjab have swollen to exceptionally high levels, affecting more than 2,300 villages across the region.
Relief services chief Nabeel Javed confirmed that 481,000 people have been evacuated along with 405,000 livestock animals from flooded areas.
Overall flooding has affected more than 1.5 million people throughout Punjab province bordering India.
“This is the biggest rescue operation in Punjab’s history,“ stated provincial disaster management agency head Irfan Ali Khan during a press conference.
He revealed that more than 800 boats and over 1,300 rescue personnel are involved in evacuating families from affected rural areas near river banks.
The latest monsoon flooding since the start of the week has killed 30 people, with hundreds dead throughout the heavier than usual season beginning in June.
“No human life is being left unattended. All kinds of rescue efforts are continuing,“ Khan emphasized.
Authorities have established more than 500 relief camps to provide shelter for displaced families and their livestock.
In the impoverished town of Shahdara near Lahore, dozens of families gathered in a school after fleeing rising waters that destroyed their homes.
“Look at all the women sitting with me—they’re helpless and distressed. Everyone has lost everything. Their homes are gone, their belongings destroyed,“ said 40-year-old cleaner Tabassum Suleman.
Rains continued throughout Saturday, including in Lahore where an entire housing development remained half submerged by floodwaters.
Retired shop owner Sikandar Mughal attempted to access his home but found water levels still too high for safe return.
“When the situation got worse and the water level reached the garage of my house, I took my bike and ran for my life,“ the 61-year-old explained.
This flooding follows mid-August landslides that killed more than 400 people in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province near Afghanistan.
In 2022, unprecedented monsoon floods submerged a third of Pakistan, with Sindh province experiencing the worst damage. – AFP
