Over 200 Killed as Torrential Rains Trigger Deadly Floods in Pakistan, PoK

PTI, Peshawar/Islamabad, Aug. 15, 2025 : At least 214 people have been killed and dozens injured as heavy rains over the past 36 hours unleashed flash floods and landslides across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), officials said Friday.

Most casualties were reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where floods swept through multiple districts, damaging homes, cutting off roads and blocking the Karakoram and Baltistan Highways in Gilgit-Baltistan. Authorities have warned that intermittent heavy rain is expected to continue until August 21.

According to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), 198 people — including 14 women and 12 children — have died in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa alone over the past 24 hours, with many still missing. Buner district was worst-hit, recording 92 deaths. Other affected areas include Mansehra, Bajaur, Batagram, Lower Dir and Shangla.

Chief Minister Amin Ali Gandapur has released Rs 500 million in emergency funds for the worst-hit districts. Two government helicopters were deployed for rescues, but one crashed in Mohmand district due to bad weather, killing two crew members and three relief workers. Hospitals have been instructed to set up flood control rooms to ensure adequate medical supplies and functioning equipment.

In Gilgit-Baltistan’s Ghizer district, eight people died and two went missing after flash floods damaged homes, vehicles, schools and health units. The Karakoram and Baltistan Highways remain blocked at multiple points. In Neelum Valley, more than 600 tourists stranded near Ratti Gali lake were advised to remain in place after the access road was destroyed. Several bridges were swept away in Lawat Nullah and Kundal Shahi, and a popular riverside restaurant was washed away.

Elsewhere in PoK, a massive landslide in Muzaffarabad’s Sarli Sacha village buried six members of one family, feared dead. In Sudhnoti district, a 26-year-old man was swept away by a stream, and in Bagh district a 57-year-old woman died when her house collapsed.

Since the start of the monsoon in late June, torrential rains have killed more than 325 people nationwide, including 142 children, according to the National Disaster Management Authority.