Pakistan Weather News / Updates

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Flooding feared in Punjab as ‘India expected to release water’ in Sutlej River​

Unusual increase in water levels has been recorded in Indian dams, says spox

BR Web Desk
August 12, 2025

The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Punjab has warned of a potential flood situation in the province’s rivers owing to expected rains in the upper regions and the anticipated release of water from India.

A PDMA spokesperson said there is a fear that India will release water into the Sutlej River in the next two days, as an unusual increase in water levels has been recorded in Indian dams. The spokesperson stated that the India’s Bhakra Dam is 61% full, Pong Dam is 76% full and Thein Dam is 64% full.

PDMA Director General Irfan Ali Kathia said that the PDMA Punjab, Indus River System Authority (IRSA), and the Irrigation Department are monitoring the situation of rivers and dams round the clock. While the flood level in the Sutlej River at Ganda Singh has returned to normal from a low level, there is a risk of a further increase in its flow, he said.

“A medium to high-level flood warning has been issued for the Chenab River at Marala, Khanki, and Qadirabad,” the director general said.

The PDMA Punjab has instructed all commissioners, deputy commissioners, and relevant departments to remain on high alert.

Kathia urged citizens residing in the riverbeds to immediately move to safe locations and cooperate with the administration in case of emergency evacuation.

He appealed to the public to take precautionary measures and avoid swimming in rivers, canals, streams, and ponds. He also advised against having picnics or unnecessary crossings around rivers during a flood situation and urged parents to keep children away from rivers and streams.

In case of any emergency, citizens can contact the PDMA Punjab helpline at 1129. The DG reaffirmed that the protection of citizens’ lives and properties is the responsibility of PDMA Punjab.

 

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PMD forecasts more rains, thundershowers across country from Aug 17 as monsoon activity intensifies​

APP
August 12, 2025

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Tuesday forecast widespread rain, wind, and thundershowers in most parts of the country in the coming days, with monsoon activity expected to intensify from August 17.

At least 312 people, including 142 children, have died and 740 others have been injured in flash floods and torrential rains that have battered several parts of Pakistan since late June, according to updated daily data from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

The NDMA said the deluges, which began on June 26, have left a trail of devastation across the country. The dead include 113 men, 57 women and 142 children, while the injured include 243 children, 209 women and 288 men.

In its latest weather advisory issued today, the Met Office said monsoon currents from the Arabian Sea were continuously penetrating the upper parts of Pakistan, while moist currents from the Bay of Bengal were likely to strengthen midweek.

A westerly wave currently affecting the region was also expected to intensify from Aug 17.

Under these conditions, rain-wind/thundershower with scattered heavy falls was expected in Islamabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, upper Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Gilgit-Baltistan from Aug 14 -17.

The wet spell was expected to last from Aug 18-21 in many northern areas, including Neelum Valley, Muzaffarabad, Rawalakot, Poonch, and several districts of GB.

 

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Another flood severs Karakoram Highway; Sutlej banks being evacuated​

Jamil Nagri | Imran Gabol
August 14, 2025

GILGIT / LAHORE: Hundreds of travellers and tourists were stranded in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) on Wendesday after a glacial lake outburst flood (Glof) swept away part of the Karakoram Highway (KKH), while authorities in Punjab ordered communities along the Sutlej River to evacuate amid forecasts of heavy monsoon rains and floods.

In Gulmit, Gojal, Hunza, a powerful torrent surged through the Juchar nullah on Tuesday evening, triggered by accelerated glacier melt.

The floodwaters destroyed a women-owned restaurant, a government tourist facilitation centre, orchards, farmland, and critical infrastructure including electricity and internet poles, according to Rescue 1122 officials.

A bridge and sections of the KKH were swept away, leaving no alternative route for locals and tourists travelling to and from China via the Khunjerab Pass.

“Never experienced such intensity of floods in the nullah,” Saeed Jan, a local resident, told Dawn.

The destruction of a fibre optic line has left the area without mobile and internet services, while rising water in the Khunjerab River damaged a power transmission line near Sost, plunging communities into darkness.

Efforts to reopen the highway have been repeatedly hampered by rising water levels and mudflows, with even foot crossings for patients and travellers now deemed impossible.

In Hunza’s Hassanabad, erosion linked to outburst flooding from the Shishper glacier continued on Wednesday, dismantling two more houses and putting others at risk.

Power to Roshanabad Mohallah was cut after an electricity pole collapsed. With a section of the KKH already washed away, traffic is being diverted through the Sas valley in Nagar.

Flash floods also struck Shigar district, damaging homes and property in Dogoro village of Basha, while a glof in the Horchas nullah damaged crops and blocked the road leading to K2, according to local officials.

Faizullah Faraq, spokesperson for the Gilgit-Baltistan government, said rehabilitation work is underway across affected areas, but warned that climate change-induced disasters “have changed the map of Gilgit-Baltistan”, with high river flows, erosion, and landslides complicating repairs.

“Passengers and vehicles are waiting for the road to be restored on both sides of the KKH,” he said, adding that the chief minister has ordered efforts to be expedited in Shigar, Ghizer, Hunza, Gilgit, Astore, Diamer, and other districts.

Evacuations in Kasur

Meanwhile, in Punjab, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has ordered the immediate evacuation of people living along the banks of the Sutlej River in Kasur district, warning of significant flooding as a powerful monsoon spell approaches.

The flow of the Sutlej is expected to increase next week, coinciding with the seventh and strongest spell of monsoon rains this season, which has already been linked to 164 deaths across Punjab.

 

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The monsoon season has so far killed at least 164 people, 582 rain-related injuries, damaged 216 homes, and resulted in the loss of 121 livestock, according to recent data.

River monitoring stations show low-level flooding on the Indus River at Kalabagh, Tarbela, and Chashma, with Tarbela Dam currently at 96 per cent capacity.

Kasur Deputy Commissioner Imran Ali said comprehensive preparations have been made to handle a potential flood, with de-silting of drains underway, machinery available, and staff deployed. “Adequate arrangements have been completed to deal with the flood situation at all sensitive places,” he said.

 

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At least 146 lives lost as flash floods wreak havoc across KP: PDMA​

Zahid Imdad | Humayun Baber | Umar Bacha
August 15, 2025






Rescue personnel carry out search operation in Swat after flash floods wreak havoc. — Rescue 1122 via Zahid Imdad

At least 146 people lost their lives, 15 others were injured and several remained missing as flash floods wreaked havoc across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Friday, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said.

Since late June, monsoon rains have wreaked havoc across the country — especially KP and northern regions — by triggering deadly floods, landslides and displacement, particularly in vulnerable, poorly drained, or densely populated areas.

At least 325 people, including 142 children, have died and 743 others have been injured since June 26 in flash floods and torrential rains that have battered several parts of Pakistan, according to daily data from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

Buner Deputy Commissioner Kashif Qayum Khan confirmed to Dawn.com that 78 people had lost their lives, while “several” were missing.

The KP government said a provincial govt MI-17 rescue helicopter had reached Buner to evacuate people to safe areas.

Buner District Police Officer (DPO) also told Dawn.com in an earlier statement that 54 bodies were brought to a Tehsil Headquarters Hospital.

PTI MNA Gohar Ali Khan, who is from Malakand Division’s Buner district, said on X: “The flood in Buner has so far claimed 78 lives.”

Besides Buner, the most-impacted districts included Bajaur, Battagram and Mansehra, according to PDMA’s daily situation report seen by Dawn.com. Buner is located in the same division as Swat and Bajaur.

According to the PDMA report, issued at 2:30pm, eight children were among 18 who died in Bajaur, while another eight were injured. Incidents related to lightning strikes took the lives of 15 men in Battagram, while 14 deaths and two injuries were reported in Mansehra due to floods.

A roof collapse incident left five dead and four wounded in Lower Dir, while a man was killed and two were injured in a similar case in Shangla. In Swat, flash floods and lightning strikes claimed four lives, the PDMA report added.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed the relevant authorities to accelerate the rescue operation in Battagram district. In a statement, he expressed grief over the deaths and prayed for those who lost their lives in the flash flood.

KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur spoke to the Hazara commissioner and Battagram DC on the phone and directed that the district administration officials reach the site to supervise the rescue operations, his government said.
According to the Associated Press of Pakistan, Battagram Assistant Commissioner Muhammad Saleem Khan said the casualties occurred after five houses were destroyed last night due to a lightning strike in Neel Band village, which is located on the border of Battagram and Mansehra districts.

In Bajaur earlier today, there were “reports of several people injured in flash floods”, which were caused by a cloudburst (heavy rainfall) in Salarzai tehsil’s Jabrarai village“, Rescue 1122 spokesperson Bilal Ahmad Faizi told Dawn.com.

“Rescue 1122 personnel, with the cooperation of residents, have so far recovered 16 bodies and rescued three injured from the rubble and rainwater,” Faizi confirmed, stating an earlier toll.

A search and rescue operation was underway under the supervision of Bajaur District Emergency Officer Amjad Khan as seven people remained missing, Faizi said, citing locals. DEO Amjad Khan and the station house in-charge were personally supervising the operation, the Rescue 1122 official added.

 

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The deluge in Battagram affected villages located on the border areas of Neel Band, Sarim and Malkal Gali, according to a statement issued by Battagram Rescue 1122 spokesperson Aziz Khan.

“The ongoing rescue efforts are facing challenges due to intermittent rain and a near-total loss of mobile network coverage, severely impacting communication,” the statement explained.

In Lower Dir, five people died and four were wounded when the roof of a house in the Maidan area’s Suri Pao village collapsed due to heavy rain, Faizi said.

Detailing the hurdles, the rescue official said: “The rescue team reached the scene after walking for three hours despite heavy rain, flooded rails, difficult and bad roads.”

Yesterday, over a dozen people were killed as rains and flooding ripped through the country’s northern parts, including Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB).

In Muzaffarabad, a massive landslide in Sarli Sacha village hit a home, leaving six members of a family buried and feared dead. Torrential rains claimed the lives of two more women in AJK’s Bagh and Sudhnoti districts.

In GB, flash floods killed at least eight people, with two still missing in the Ghizer district, while also devastating villages in the Khalti, Ishkoman and Yasin areas.

Similarly, a spell of heavy downpour lashed various parts of Abbottabad district yesterday, triggering flash floods that severely disrupted traffic flow and caused damage to infrastructure.

 

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Flash floods hit Buner hardest as death toll in northern areas surges to over 340​

Umar Bacha | Zahid Imdad
August 16, 2025



An overturned freight vehicle on the flood-affected Alpuri-Bisham Highway in KP’s Shangla on Aug 15, 2025. — APP




Residents walk in front of the damaged houses a day after flash floods in the Buner district of the monsoon-hit KP on Aug 16, 2025. — AFP





People gather near a damaged vehicle and scattered debris after the road washed out following a flash flood in Mingora, the main city of Swat Valley, in monsoon-hit KP on Aug 16, 2025. — AFP



People prepare a mass grave in KP’s Buner after over 200 people died in the district due to flash floods, on Aug 16, 2025. — via Umar Bacha




Rescue personnel at a flooded site in Mansehra following flash floods, on Aug 16, 2025. — Rescue 1122 via Um

The death toll from recent flash floods in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa surged to 327 on Saturday as various districts, especially hard-hit Buner, reported more loss of lives, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said on Saturday.

This adds to the casualties in Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, where the unprecedented floods have claimed at least 12 and nine lives, respectively, besides causing widespread destruction.

KP witnessed devastating scenes yesterday as flash floods caused by heavy rainfall and cloudbursts in multiple districts claimed over 200 lives in a day, including five crew members of a provincial government chopper that crashed in Mohmand during relief and rescue efforts.

Buner was the worst-affected district in the province with 204 lives lost in the past 48 hours, according to a PDMA situation report. It added that 120 people were injured, while Deputy Commissioner Kashif Qayum Khan’s office reported that 50 were still missing.

According to a PDMA report seen by Dawn.com earlier today, Shangla reported 36 deaths, Mansehra 23, Swat 22, Bajaur 21, Battagram 15, Lower Dir five and a child drowned in Abbottabad.

Detailing infrastructure damage, the report said 11 houses were destroyed while 63 were partially damaged due to the floods. Two schools in Swat and another in Shangla were also affected.

 

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The KP government has declared the severely affected mountainous districts of Buner, Bajaur, Swat, Shangla, Mansehra and Battagram as disaster-hit areas.

The KP government released Rs1 billion in funds to the PDMA for “timely compensation/preparedness and response to cope with any untoward situation”, a notification shared by it on X said.

It also allocated over Rs1.55bn worth of funds for its Communication and Works Department for the restoration of highways and bridges in the flood-affected districts.

 

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On the directives of Governor Faisal Karim Kundi, the Pakistan Red Crescent in KP set up an Emergency Relief Centre to assist flood-affected districts. It can be contacted on 0300-5849255 (secretary), 0334-9086169 (admin officer), 091-9333666, or 091-2590846.

In a statement on X, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said he was “deeply anguished by the devastation caused by cloudbursts and flash floods in KP and northern Pakistan”.

Extending his heartfelt condolences and expressing solidarity, he affirmed: “The government is mobilising all resources for rescue and relief operations.”

The premier added that he met with National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman Lt Gen Inam Haider Malik and directed him to “expedite rescue operations in the nine affected districts of Swat, Buner, Bajaur, Torghar, Mansehra, Shangla, and Battagram, with urgent focus on Bajaur and Battagram”.

“Immediate relief is being provided to stranded residents, medical aid to the injured, and heavy machinery has been deployed to clear roads and restore connectivity,” PM Shehbaz said.

 

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Tourists trapped in GB’s Naltar Valley: govt​

Meanwhile, GB government spokesperson Faizullah Faraq said a “great number of tourists” were trapped in the Naltar Valley as the land route was disconnected after floodwaters washed away a huge chunk of the Naltar Expressway.

In his statement, the official said the power supply in the area had been suspended as the three power plants situated there were shut down due to the floods.

According to Faraq, river waters from the Jaglot Goro stream entered several houses and restaurants in low-lying areas.

The KP PDMA told AFP that around 2,000 rescue workers were engaged in recovering bodies from the debris and carrying out relief operations in nine affected districts.

Rescue 1122 Director General Muhammad Tayyab Abdullah told Dawn.com that an elite rescue squad of 80 individuals has been formed for areas where operations are facing “intense difficulty”.

“In the past 12 hours, 3,542 emergencies have been responded to, while 76 vehicles are taking part in the rescue operations,” he detailed.

DG Abdullah noted that the teams were facing challenges in their activities because of ruined roads, while people were also not able to contact helplines due to damaged mobile towers.

Similarly, KP Rescue 1122 spokesperson Bilal Ahmed Faizi told AFP: “Heavy rainfall, landslides in several areas, and washed-out roads are causing significant challenges in delivering aid, particularly in transporting heavy machinery and ambulances.

“Due to road closures in most areas, rescue workers are travelling on foot to conduct operations in remote regions,” he highlighted.

“They are trying to evacuate survivors, but very few people are relocating due to the deaths of their relatives or loved ones being trapped in the debris.”

 

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In pictures: Pakistan’s north reels from death, ruined infrastructure after calamitous floods​

Flash floods claim over 300 lives and wreak destruction across KP, GB and AJK.

Dawn.com
August 16, 2025

Flash floods caused by heavy rainfall and cloudbursts devastated the country’s northern areas on Friday, with over 300 lives lost in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa alone so far.

The unprecedented floods also claimed at least 12 lives in Gilgit-Baltistan. The majority of casualties were in Ghizer district, where the deluge damaged agricultural land, crops and a vital bridge, cutting off the area’s 15,000 residents from the rest of the region.

Another nine people died across Azad Jammu and Kashmir, where Infrastructure losses included two schools, 12 water mills, one main and four pedestrian bridges, six electricity poles, among others.

Rescue and army personnel have been engaged in rescue and relief operations since yesterday, as the country reels from yet another monsoon calamity.

 

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