344 Dead, Over 150 Missing as Flash Floods Ravage Northwest Pakistan

By: Chioma Madonna Ndukwu

Flash floods in northwest Pakistan have claimed at least 344 lives, with over 150 people still missing after heavy monsoon rains triggered widespread devastation. The hardest-hit areas are in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Buner and Shangla districts, where entire villages have been buried, leaving rescuers in a race against time to find survivors.

Rescue operations are being severely hampered by ongoing rainfall and thick mud, making it difficult for teams to reach the worst-affected regions. Asfandyar Khattak, head of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority, confirmed that Buner alone has seen at least 208 deaths, with numerous villages partially or fully buried by debris.

Around 2,000 rescue workers are scouring wreckage across nine affected districts, but with power lines and mobile towers down, communication and coordination remain a major challenge. The situation remains urgent as more rain is forecast, raising fears that the death toll could rise further in the coming days