World News | Heavy Rains in Northwest Pakistan Leave 25 Dead, 145 Injured

Peshawar, Jun 11 (AP) Heavy rains swept through Pakistan's northwest, causing several houses to collapse and leaving at least 25 people dead and 145 injured, authorities said.

Rains and hail hit the Bannu, Lakki Marwat and Karak districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, senior rescue officer Khateer Ahmed said, uprooting trees and knocking down electrical transmission towers.

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Officials were working to provide emergency relief to the injured, Ahmed said.

Last year, monsoon rains and flooding devastated Pakistan, killing more than 1,700 people, affecting around 33 million people and displacing nearly 8 million.

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To mitigate the effects of natural disasters, the government in its national budget draft presented Friday allocated USD 1.3 billion for climate resilience.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Saturday expressed grief over the loss of life loss from the storm and directed authorities to pick up the pace of the relief operation.

Meanwhile, Sharif ordered officials to put in place emergency measures in advance of the approaching Cyclone Biparjoy in the Arabia Sea. The “severe and intense” cyclone with wind speeds of 150 kilometers per hour (93 miles per hour) was on a course toward the country's south, Pakistan's disaster management agency said. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)