Death Toll in Pakistan's Punjab Rises Amid Severe Floods
(MENAFN) The death toll from the devastating floods in Pakistan's northeastern Punjab province has risen to 30 in the past three days.
Authorities are carrying out controlled breaches of embankments in a desperate bid to protect major cities from the surging waters, a minister reported on Saturday.
Rescue operations, supported by military personnel, are evacuating thousands of people stranded in flood-affected regions, as massive torrents continue to flow southward, heading toward the powerful Indus River.
Punjab’s Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb informed reporters in the provincial capital, Lahore, that nearly half a million individuals have already been moved from various districts.
This marks the first time in Pakistan's 78-year history that all three major eastern rivers – Chenab, Ravi, and Sutlej – have overflowed simultaneously.
This has submerged over 2,000 villages and impacted more than 1.5 million people to date.
Aurangzeb stated that around 500 temporary shelters have been established across the province to accommodate those displaced by the flooding.
Footage aired on a broadcaster showed rescuers rescuing individuals trapped on rooftops and even in trees in the flood-hit areas of Kasur district.
Another video depicted rescuers using loudspeakers to urge residents living near riverbanks and low-lying areas to evacuate.
In Multan, which is expected to face severe flooding on Sunday, the local authorities are aiming to relocate 300,000 residents to safer areas by Saturday night.
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