The death toll in the ongoing spell of heavy rain in different areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa rose to 16 on Monday as the authorities issued flood alert in overflowing streams across the province.In the latest incident, five people including children died while four others injured when their house came down amid heavy rain in Abbottabad.The incident occurred in Hajiya Street of Abbottabad where injured were pulled out of the debris by Rescue personnel and shifted to the hospital.

Earlier, two children died while their mother and a little girl injured when roof of their house collapsed in Billitang Kot village of Kohat.Two children seriously injured when roof of their house collapsed in Amin Jabukhail village of Lakki Marwat.In Mansehra, heavy rains brought more chill to the weather with electricity blackout throughout the district as Met Office more rains in next three days. There were a number of roof collapse incidents in Landikotal amid heavy rain and the authorities have issued flood warnings in streams.

A number of standing crops were damage in Khyber District as the rain continued to lash the area for the second day in running.The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has released a preliminary report on the loss of life and property caused by the rains that have been ongoing since March 25 across various districts of the province.According to PDMA, a total of 16 people have lost their lives and 55 have been injured so far due to collapsing roofs and walls of houses during the heavy downpours.

The deceased included more than 10 children and one woman, while the injured included 30 men and women, and over 24 children. The report states that a total of eight houses have been partially damaged due to the rains. These incidents occurred in Bannu, North Waziristan, Kohat and Lakki Marwat.PDMA said that Rescue 1122, district administrations, and other relevant departments are in coordination, and relief activities are ongoing in the affected areas.

The authority has directed the district administrations to immediately provide relief goods to the victims. The PDMA Director General has specifically instructed the administration of Bannu district to ensure prompt financial assistance to the families of the deceased, while all districts have been ordered to accelerate relief operations. According to PDMA, intermittent rains are continuing in different parts of the province and are expected to persist until Tuesday. 

The authority has advised the public to avoid unnecessary travel, stay away from sensitive tourist locations, and follow the alerts and advisories issued by government departments. According to the PDMA spokesperson, the Emergency Operations Centre is fully operational, and the public can contact the free helpline 1700 for any emergency, weather updates, or information.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)