The recent wave of flash floods, triggered by torrential rains and cloudbursts has left a trail of destruction across northern Pakistan, with over 350 lives lost. Nowhere has the devastation been more severe than in Buner district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), where officials confirmed more than 200 deaths in just 48 hours. Entire villages have been swept away, families torn apart, and livelihoods destroyed.
DC Kashif Qayum Khan reported that at least 50 people remain missing, while more than 120 have been injured. “The scale of destruction is unlike anything we have seen in recent years,” he said, adding that dozens of homes were washed away in low-lying areas.
Elsewhere in KP, the situation remains grim.
As per PDMA, several causalities occurred in below mentioned areas
- Shangla reported 37 deaths
- Mansehra 23
- Swat 22
- Bajaur 21
- Battagram 15
- Lower Dir five
- a child drowned in Abbottabad.
In Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), the flooding has also turned deadly, with nearly 12 lives lost in GB and nine in AJK. Officials there have warned that the toll may go further as access to remote valleys remains cut off.
KP Province in Mourning
The KP government has declared an emergency in
- Buner
- Bajaur
- Swat
- Shangla
- Mansehra
- Torghar
- Upper and Lower Dir
Battagram, authorising district administrations to mobilize all available resources. At the Governor House in Peshawar, the national flag flew at half-mast in mourning for the five helicopter crew members who died during rescue operations in Mohmand.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed “deep anguish” over the disaster. “The government is mobilizing all resources for rescue and relief operations,” he said after meeting NDMA Chairman Lt Gen Inam Haider Malik, instructing him to expedite operations in the hardest-hit districts.
Infrastructure and Connectivity Severely Damaged
Massive damage has been caused by floods, such as it has damaged homes, schools, bridges, and communication networks. In KP alone, 11 houses were destroyed and 63 partially damaged, while in GB, over 318 homes have been completely demolished.
In Naltar Valley (GB), floods washed away large sections of the expressway, trapping hundreds of tourists. Power supply was suspended after three hydro plants were shut down, leaving thousands in darkness. Elsewhere in Skardu and Ghizer, bridges were swept away, cutting off entire communities from relief.
Telecommunication services were also disrupted as floodwaters damaged cell towers and fixed-line sites. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) claimed that its teams were working with mobile operators to restore services, while Jazz declared free calls for subscribers in KP to support relief efforts.
Recovery and other efforts to relieve the masses are ongoing
Ali Amin Gandapur has directed the officials to restore road connectivity and expedite compensation payments. The KP government has released
- Rs 1.5 billion to PDMA for immediate rescue and relief
- Another Rs 1.5 billion for road repair, and Rs 500 million for compensation to bereaved families.
Furthermore, the Pakistan Red Crescent established an Emergency Relief Centre in KP, while the Pakistan Army and Frontier Corps have played a role in mobilizing troops and machinery especially for conducting search-and-rescue operations in remote valleys.
Federal Minister Amir Muqam, visiting flood-hit Buner, assured victims that “the entire nation stands with you in this time of trial” and confirmed that the prime minister will visit the affected districts soon.
A Nation in Solidarity
Civil society and officials have also stepped forward. The Provincial Management Service announced a voluntary one-day salary donation for relief work, while political leaders from both government and opposition visited Buner to meet grieving families.
“Many villages have been completely destroyed,” Muqam admitted. “Our immediate focus is to save lives, but the real challenge will be rebuilding communities.”
Way Forward: From Relief to Resilience
While emergency measures are highly important, experts emphasizes that Pakistan cannot afford to treat flash floods as isolated events. As the climate change is the real cause of intensifying rainfall patterns, long-term solutions are highly crucial:
1. Early Warning Systems must be strengthened.
2. Climate-Resilient Infrastructure such as Bridges, roads, and homes must be built so that they can withstand floods. They can be built easily by using modern engineering and local materials.
3. Effective Management – Planting trees in upland areas and managing riverbanks can help in minimizing the destructive speed of floodwaters.
4. Disaster Preparedness Training – Local communities, especially belonging from the mountainous districts, are in dire need of regular drills and awareness campaigns to know how to respond.
5. Seeking for International Climate Support – Pakistan is considered to be one of the most climate-vulnerable countries, that needs both technical and financial assistance from global partners to invest in resilience.
A Moment of Reckoning
The floods have once again depicted about the extreme fragility of communities living in northern Pakistan, where poverty and geography amalgamate to convert natural disasters into humanitarian crises. For survivors in Buner, Shangla, and Gilgit, the immediate priority is
- Food
- Shelter
- Medical care
But for Pakistan as a whole, the tragedy must serve as a wake-up call: climate adaptation can no longer wait.
As CM Gandapur noted during his visit to Buner: “Our government will fully compensate affected families. But the bigger duty we owe is to ensure that such devastation does not repeat itself with every season of rain.”