Officials confirmed on Friday that almost half of the 266 deaths linked to Pakistan’s unusually heavy monsoon rains are children who were on their national school holidays.
The staggering death toll underscores the particular vulnerability of young people during the ongoing weather crisis across the country.
The majority of fatalities have occurred in Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous province, which has experienced a monsoon rainfall increase of 70% compared to last year
The Punjab Provincial Disaster Management Agency’s (PDMA) Mazhar Hussain said that most of the deaths have occurred in Punjab, the most populous province, where monsoon rainfall has been 70% higher than last year.
“Children are very vulnerable to this situation. They are playing in the water, bathing, and electricity shocks can happen,” he told AFP. “That’s why their ratio is higher than any other, especially because it’s a holiday in Punjab, so schools and colleges are closed.”
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said that 266 people had been killed across the country since the monsoon rains hit on June 26, with 126 of them children.
Flash floods, building collapses, lightning strikes and drownings were among the causes of death. Hundreds more have been injured.
An agency spokeswoman told AFP this week that the heaviest rains usually start later in the monsoon season.
“Such death tolls are usually seen in August, but this year the impact has been markedly different,” she said.
Rains are expected to strengthen in August, the national disaster agency has warned.
A landslide this week caused by torrential rains swept away several cars in the Gilgit-Baltistan region, a popular tourist destination marked by towering mountains, deep valleys and wide rivers.
In late June, at least 13 tourists were swept to their deaths while sheltering from flash floods on a raised river bank.
Monsoon season brings South Asia 70% to 80% of its annual rainfall, and runs from late June until September in Pakistan.
The annual rains are vital for agriculture and food security, and the livelihoods of millions of farmers, but also bring destruction.
In 2022, monsoon floods submerged a third of the country and killed 1,700 people.
