Shafiullah Rahimi, the Taliban’s appointed spokesman for Afghanistan’s Ministry of Environment, said on Sunday that at least 31 people had been killed, 74 wounded and 41 others were missing. Flood water it hit the capital, Kabul, the districts of Maidan Wardak and Ghazni. He added that most of the injured were in western Kabul and Maidan Wardak.
Rahimi also said that about 250 livestock were destroyed by the floods.
The floods brought more problems to the already troubled Afghanistan. In April, the UN’s poverty alleviation agency said South Asia was facing a third consecutive year of drought, a second year of economic crisis and the aftermath of years of war and natural disasters.
The latest flash flood occurred in Jalrez district of Maidan Wardak district west of Kabul, killing 12 people, said Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid. At least 40 other people were missing and rescue teams were busy in search and rescue operations, he said.
The district governor’s office said hundreds of houses were damaged or destroyed and those missing are believed to have been damaged by collapsed buildings.
The statement added that hundreds of farmlands were washed away and damaged and the main road between Kabul and the central province of Bamiyan was closed due to flooding.
In Pakistan, 13 people died and seven were injured due to heavy rains and landslides as the rainy season continued to affect parts of the country on Sunday.
In the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, nine people lost their lives in the last 48 hours in rain-related incidents.
In the Skardu area of Gilgit Baltistan, four family members died when their car overturned, according to police officer Raja Mirza Hassan.
Taimur Khan, spokesperson of the regional disaster management agency, said that the heavy rains and thunderstorms have destroyed at least 74 houses in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Officials have declared a state of emergency in Chitral district after heavy rains triggered flash floods in the hilly area.
Since the monsoon began on June 25, the country has witnessed 101 death including 16 women and 42 children, according to the National Disaster Management Agency.