This monsoon season has turned deadly for many communities across Pakistan, as sudden and violent cloudbursts unleashed torrents of rain that triggered flash floods and landslides.
From villages in the mountains of northern Pakistan to towns nestled in the Himalayan valleys of India, hundreds of lives have been lost within minutes as walls of water swept away homes, shops, and roads.
Rescue workers have suffered alot at the hands of cloudburst and struggle against mud, debris, and raging currents, while grieving families bury loved ones caught off guard by nature’s fury.
What Are Cloudbursts and Why Do They Happen?
If we study its definition, cloudburst means falling of 100 mm of rainfall or more than this in a single hour over a small area. For people on the ground, that translates into skies suddenly opening up and flooding entire valleys almost instantly.
Read more: Flash floods, cloudbursts devastate Buner as death toll in northern Pakistan crosses 350
This year, the monsoon—born in the Bay of Bengal and moving westwards each summer—has brought specifically destructive cloudbursts. Scientists keep on explaining that they occur when moist monsoon winds confront with cold mountain air in northern India and Pakistan, forcing intense condensation.
The warming climate is amplifying this effect. Hotter air holds more moisture, meaning when clouds do burst, the rainfall is far heavier.
Fahad Saeed, a climate researcher said that in Pakistan’s northern mountains, warm monsoon systems are highly confronting with the subtropical jet stream coming from the Mediterranean.
Global warming is pushing this jet stream further south, creating perfect conditions for dense “towers of clouds” that release violent downpours.
Similar events are seen worldwide—from floods in Texas to torrential rains in China—but South Asia’s geography makes the region particularly vulnerable.
Why Are Pakistan and India Hit So Hard?
This monsoon alone, at least four major deadly cloudbursts have struck the western Himalayas. In Uttarakhand, India, entire village houses were filmed collapsing down a mountainside. In Buner, Pakistan’s Hindu Kush range, more than 200 people died in a single hour after 150 mm of rain pounded the valley.
Scientists emphasize that geography plays a critical role. On flat land, intense rainfall spreads over wide areas, reducing its impact. But in steep mountain valleys, the water channels into narrow streams, instantly turning into flash floods and triggering deadly landslides. With populations growing in these fragile mountain zones, the human toll is only increasing.
Can Cloudbursts Be Predicted?
Forecasting for cloudbursts is still a challenge country facing. Weather radars can provide short-term warnings of dense cloud build-up, but predicting the exact spot of a cloudburst days in advance is not feasible at all. India has taken a step forward by installing new radars across the Himalayas, while Pakistan’s disaster authority says it is capable of giving alerts regarding general areas at risk.
For now, communities are still at the mercy of these violent storms. As climate change is highly fueling warmer monsoons and shifting weather systems. Experts keep on giving warnings that cloudbursts may turn to become frequent and more life-threatening, demanding for stronger early warning system, better disaster preparedness all over South Asia.