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SEVEN KILLED AS MONSOON RAINS BATTER KARACHI WITH MORE SHOWERS LOOMING Wednesday, 20 August, 2025 | 25 Safar, 1447
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RAIN EMERGENCY DECLARED ACROSS PORT CITY WITH ALL TEAMS PLACED ON HIGH ALERT TO RESPOND TO URBAN FLOODING, TRAFFIC DISRUPTIONS AND OTHER RAIN-RELATED INCIDENTS K-ELECTRIC CLAIMS DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM REMAINS STABLE, BUT SAFETY OF LIFE AND PROPERTY, AND PREVENTION OF ACCIDENTS, REMAINS TOP PRIORITY
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COMMUTERS FACE CHALLENGES AS HOURS-LONG RAIN SPELL LED TO THE CITY’S MAIN THOROUGHFARES CHOKED WITH TRAFFIC
PUBLIC HOLIDAY AND CLOSURE OF ALL PRIVATE AND PUBLIC SCHOOLS ANNOUNCED AS PMD PREDICTS MORE RAINS IN KARACHI
KP flood toll rises to 358 as relief, rehab efforts expanded PESHAWAR/ISLAMABAD/LAHORE staff report
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KARACHI
staff report
T least seven people were killed in Karachi on Tuesday after heavy monsoon rains battered parts of the port, flooding various neighbourhoods, brought the vehicular traffic to a standstill on major arteries and plunged the entire city into darkness, prompting the government to declare a rain emergency. According to the Met Office, as of 8pm, Gulshan-i-Hadeed recorded the
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Heavy monsoon rains and catastrophic flooding have left at least 358 people dead in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), with widespread damage to infrastructure and ongoing relief operations as authorities warn the current rain cycle may continue through August 21, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority said on Tuesday. Its report, the PDMA said that record rains started in KP on August 15, have wreaked havoc across the province that prompted an emergency as torrential rains ravaged homes, displaced families, and left a trail of destruction across Buner, Swat, Shangla, Mansehra, and beyond. According to the latest data from the KP PDMA, 358 people have died in rain-related incidents since August 15, with Buner reporting the highest toll at 225.
the army and additional units were mobilised in the flood-affected areas.” He said that KP received eight units of Infantry and Frontier Constabulary (FC), who were directly involved in search and rescue, and flood relief operations, while GB had one, taking the total to nine units. He also said that one engineer brigade, two engineer battalions and two urban search and rescue teams were deployed in KP, while two engineer battalions were sent to GB, where they were “working on road opening and removing landslides”. “Three medical units were deployed in KP, while nine medical camps were deployed in GB. More than 6,304 people have been treated.” “In search and rescue operations, 6,903 people have been rescued,” he added. Gen Chaudhry also said that one-day rations were allocated, amounting to 585 tonnes, adding that army aviation was deployed to oversee medical casualty evacuation, emergencies, and transporta-
tion of food and medicine. He highlighted that multiple bridges and roads were repaired, while the telecommunication infrastructure in affected areas, including Shangla and Buner, was being repaired alongside the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority. Speaking more specifically about affected regions, the DG ISPR said that the army deployed two battalions in Buner, two battalions in Shangla, one in Swat, one FC wing each in Bajaur and Dir, and one company in Swabi. “These are dedicated resources … which were deployed 24 hours for flood relief rescue operations,” he said. While speaking about logistics support, DG ISPR said that there were bases in Peshawar and Nowshera. “In Peshawar, there were 2,500 ready-to-eat meals and 20 tonnes of rations. In Nowshera, there are 5,000 ready-to-eat meals and 505 tonnes of rations,” he said, adding that they were being transported by road and helicopters.
highest level of rain at 170 millimetres, followed by Airport Old Area with 158.5mm, Jinnah Terminal 153mm, Nazimabad 149.6mm, Surjani Town 145.2mm, Keamari 140mm, Saadi Town 140.2mm, Defence Housing Authority Phase VII 134mm, University Road 133mm, PAF Base Faisal 128mm, North Karachi 108.4mm, Korangi 132.2mm, Gulshan-i-Maymar 98mm, PAF Masroor Base 87mm, Orangi Town 66.2mm and Bahria Town 4.8mm.
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Another 181 people were injured, while the dead included 287 men, 41 women and 30 children. Buner was the worst-hit district in the province, where flash flooding and building collapses left 225 people dead, including 193 men, 23 women and nine children, according to the report. Another 120 people sustained injuries. Following Buner, Shangla district reported 36 deaths from flash floods, while 22 fatalities were recorded in Mansehra, another 22 in Bajaur, and 20 in Swat, where both flash flooding and infrastructure damage claimed lives. Flash flooding in the KP’s Swabi district also left 17 dead, according to the PDMA. Due to separate roof collapse incidents, five people died in Lower Dir, and another two people lost their lives in Noshewra. Abbotabad, Torghar, and South Waziristan recorded one death each, the report noted.
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Army fully leading flood rehab in KP, GB with rescue, medical and engineering units deployment: DG ISPR ISLAMABAD
staff report
Inter-Services Public Relations Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry provided a summary of the efforts initiated by the military in the northern areas for monsoon rains. Briefing the media alongside Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar and National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik, Lt-Gen Chaudhry said that Army aviation units are conducting aerial sorties to deliver supplies and evacuate residents from remote regions. “Six sorties are scheduled for Tuesday, targeting inaccessible areas. In Buner, Swat, and Shangla, two battalions each have been deployed, while Frontier Corps wings are active in Bajaur and a company in Swabi”, the ISPR DG stated. He said, “On the orders of Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir,
He also highlighted that 90 roads were damaged in KP. Of those, nine roads were fully operational and 86 were partially restored, he added. Mansehra, Battagram, Ghizer and Shigar were most affected in GB, he said, where two medical camps were established and distribution of rations was ongoing. DG ISPR also commended the Pakistan Air Force for doing a “great job” in relief efforts and praised civil society groups operating from Karachi for providing relief. Rescue, relief operation in flood-affected areas being carried out in well-coordinated manner: Tarar Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar said on Tuesday that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had categorically stated that it was a national catastrophe and all governments and departments will work collectively to overcome this tragedy.
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PIA flights disrupted at Karachi airport amid heavy rains KARACHI
Monitoring Desk
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) operations at Karachi airport were severely disrupted on Tuesday after heavy rains and stormy weather hit the city. Intermittent downpours since early morning caused waterlogging on major roads and traffic jams, leaving many passengers and staff struggling to reach Jinnah International Airport on time. PIA spokesperson Abdullah Khan confirmed that several flights had been cancelled or delayed as bad weather hampered operations and prevented passengers from arriving at the terminal. The national flag carrier cancelled its Karachi–Quetta–Karachi flights PK310/311 and Karachi–Islamabad–Karachi flights PK-308/309, while Lahore–Karachi flight PK-305 was delayed at Lahore Airport and will depart once conditions improve. PIA’s Karachi–Najaf–Karachi service (PK-109/110) was also delayed, with its departure rescheduled for 10:30pm as passengers struggled to make it on time. Similarly, Karachi– Islamabad flight PK-370 has been rescheduled for 9:30pm. International operations were also affected, with Karachi–Jeddah (PK-731) and Karachi– Madinah (PK-843) departures facing delays. In addition, tomorrow’s Karachi–Islamabad–Karachi flights PK-300/301 have been cancelled. The airline has urged passengers to stay in contact with its call centre at 111-786-786 for updated flight information and to confirm road conditions before heading to the airport. “PIA apologises for the inconvenience caused by weather-related disruptions and is making every effort to normalise operations at the earliest,” the spokesperson said.
Earthquake of 5.2-magnitude jolts Islamabad, Rawalpindi, and parts of KP: PMD ISLAMABAD
staff report
An earthquake of 5.2-magnitude on Tuesday jolted Islamabad, Rawalpindi, and several parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Seismic Network of the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said in a statement. According to the statement, the quake was felt in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, KP’s Peshawar, Swat, Chitral, and Abbottabad. The PMD’s press release said that the earthquake originated at 10:20am PKT. Its epicentre was the Hindu Kush region in Afghanistan, at a depth of 190 kilometres. Punjab’s Provincial Disaster Management Authority reported that the earthquake was also felt in the province’s divisions of Bahawalpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Lahore, Multan, Sahiwal and Sargodha. No casualties have been reported so far, and according to KP’s Rescue 1122 spokesperson Bilal Faizi, an emergency has not yet been declared. Pakistan falls on three major tectonic plates — the Arabian, Euro-Asian and Indian — which create five seismic zones under the country. The intersection of multiple fault lines means that tectonic movements remain a frequent occurrence in the region. The Hindu Kush region is recognised as one of the most active seismic zones in the world, lying at the junction of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates where their ongoing collision generates frequent earthquakes, including rare deep-focus events that can reach depths of over 200km, according to the US Geological Survey. This seismicity is attributed to subductionrelated processes and slab break-off beneath the Hindu Kush–Pamir region, making it part of the broader Himalayan seismic belt that has produced several destructive earthquakes across Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northern India.