Pakistan ‘mini-cyclone’ death toll rises to 44 with another 202 injured

A severe storm in northwest Pakistan, dubbed a “mini-cyclone”, has killed 44 people and injured more than 200, officials said Monday. Intense rain and strong winds buffeted the city of Peshawar and adjacent districts late Sunday, felling trees, causing dozens of roofs and walls to collapse and blocking many roads. The injured include nearly 100 children, according to officials, while farmers have seen their produce badly affected.

At least 44 people have been killed and 202 wounded. The storm followed by heavy rain and hailstorm has severely damaged wheat crops and orchards.

Provincial Information Minister Mushtaq Ghani

Aamir Afaq, a senior official of the provincial disaster management authority, confirmed the death toll and told AFP that efforts were underway “to provide food, shelters and emergency medical services to the affectees”. An AFP reporter in Peshawar said rescue workers were removing fallen trees to open roads while engineers from mobile phone companies were repairing the towers. On Sunday evening, flood waters from the torrential rain reached a depth of a metre (three feet) in some parts of the city, which is home to more than three million people.

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