Kumrat Valley, Upper Dir: In a successful rescue operation, 200 tourists stranded in Kumrat Valley due to heavy rainfall have been safely evacuated, according to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Culture and Tourism Authority.
The tourists were rescued from Dojangla, Kala Chesma, and Abshar areas and transported to the Grand Palace Hotel. They will be shifted to Kalam shortly, as per the authority’s spokesperson who shared the update with APP.
Authorities ensured that the rescued tourists received necessary food and other essential services, with local police and district administration providing crucial support during the operation.
The tourists became stranded after roads leading out of Kumrat Valley were blocked by landslides triggered by the heavy rains.
This successful rescue comes just a day after a tragic incident in Maidan tehsil, Upper Dir, where 13 members of a family lost their lives when their roof collapsed due to heavy rainfall.
Pakistan’s monsoon season, which spans from July to August, typically brings about 255 millimeters of rain each month. The 2022 monsoon rains caused widespread devastation, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), where over 75,000 homes were destroyed and 130,000 partially damaged, as reported by government and international aid agencies.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) reported that between July 29 and August 28 of this year, 74 people have lost their lives, and 128 others have been injured due to rain-related incidents in KP. Additionally, 906 houses have been damaged in the current monsoon spell.
Notably, from July 29 to August 1, heavy rains resulted in 24 fatalities and 17 injuries across the province. On August 17, a local government representative was swept away by strong currents in a Swabi nullah, while a young boy tragically died in a wall collapse incident in Bannu, both caused by flash floods triggered by the ongoing heavy rains in KP.
