PTI Peshawar/Islamabad

At least 154 people were killed and several injured as heavy rains lashed several parts of Pakistan and PoK over the past 24 hours, officials said on Friday. Most deaths occurred in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after torrential rains triggered flash floods in various districts, while floods damaged scores of buildings and blocked major arteries, including the Karakoram Highway and Baltistan Highway in Gilgit-Baltistan in PoK. A total of 75 people died in Buner district, 17 in Mansehra and 18 each in Bajaur and Batagram districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, officials said.

“Over 125 people, including children, have died as the cloud burst followed by flash floods struck the province since Thursday night,” spokesman for Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Faizi said. Rescue teams and residents have recovered the bodies, he said. Faizi, however, added the number of deaths is expected to rise as scores of people are still missing in affected areas.

Five were killed and four were wounded in Lower Dir; four deaths were reported in Swat; while one casualty and two injuries were recorded in Shangla in the province. A search and rescue operation was on under the supervision of Bajaur District Emergency Officer (DEO) Amjad Khan, Faizi said.

5 killed as relief chopper crashes 

A helicopter carrying relief goods for rain-hit areas crashed due to bad weather two pilots and three others in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. KP government’s MI-17 helicopter had taken off from Peshawar for Bajaur when contact was lost over Mohmand tribal district, reports said.