16 Dead in Afghanistan Floods as Hundreds of Homes Destroyed

16 Dead in Afghanistan Floods as Hundreds of Homes Destroyed/Reuters

Dil Bar Irshad | May 27, 2024 | 08:51 AM IST | Floods/Landslides/Event | Follow on Google News

16 Dead in Afghanistan Floods as Hundreds of Homes Destroyed

16 Dead in Afghanistan Floods as Hundreds of Homes Destroyed

Key Highlights:

1. Recent floods in Baghlan and Badakhshan provinces of Afghanistan have claimed 16 lives, including women and children.
2. Approximately 500 houses have been completely or partially destroyed by the floods.
3. The World Food Programme reports severe access issues, resorting to alternative means like donkeys for aid delivery.

In the wake of severe floods in Afghanistan’s Baghlan and Badakhshan provinces, at least 16 people, including women and children, have lost their lives, according to a report by TOLO News. Local officials reported that the floods have led to the complete or partial destruction of around 500 houses.

The affected areas include Dand-e-Ghori, Doshi, the city of Pul-e-Khumri, the village of Morchak in central Badakhshan, and several other parts of these provinces. Abdul Ghafoor Khadem, the Taliban-appointed Baghlan Police Command chief, noted that the most significant casualties occurred in the Larkhab area of Doshi district in Baghlan province, where six people, including three children, one woman, and two men, were killed, and over 300 houses were destroyed.

In Badakhshan, Mohammad Kamgar, head of the Taliban-appointed Natural Disaster Management, reported that ten members of one family died, and one person was injured due to the floods.

Victims of the floods have expressed frustration over the delayed arrival of aid. Hizbullah, a flood victim, said, “The flood took nine members of my family. We found two bodies, but the others are still missing.” Another victim, Ziaullah, appealed for assistance, stating, “Our request is that as we are among the affected, whatever is allocated to any part of Afghanistan, do not forget us.”

Over the past week, devastating floods across Afghanistan have resulted in the deaths of more than 300 people, destruction of hundreds of residential houses, and ruination of thousands of acres of agricultural land.

Due to the heavy floods, the World Food Programme (WFP) announced on May 12 that most flood-affected areas are inaccessible by vehicles. The WFP has resorted to alternative methods, such as using donkeys, to deliver emergency supplies to Baghlan. The organization shared an image of aid workers transferring supplies on donkeys, emphasizing the challenges in accessing flood-affected regions.

The WFP posted on X, highlighting the dire situation: “Most of the affected areas in Baghlan, Afghanistan, are inaccessible by trucks. WFP had to resort to every alternative to get food to the survivors who lost everything.”

Source: ANI

Dil Bar Irshad

Dil Bar Irshad is a seasoned journalist, hails from Jammu Kashmir's Doda, covers political, social, business stories, index stories.