Deadly flooding in Pakistan kills hundreds

July 31, 2010

The worst flooding in 80 years in Pakistan has left at least 800 people dead, and affected over a million more. The floods were caused by heavy monsoon rains and have destroyed homes in the country, especially in the northern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The said that twelve inches of rain fell over a 36 hour period. Sohail Rahman, reporting for Al Jazeera from Pakistan's capital of Islamabad, said that Islamabad experienced a "deluge of water" flowing south from Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa. He went on to say that "floods have really affected the infrastructure in and around the province. The people in the affected areas were quite critical in the first 24 hours, saying that the authorities were not doing enough."

Rescue operations have been hampered by the weather; while seventeen helicopters are operating, with more to come, they cannot operate in all areas due to the weather, and just 48 boats are available for use by rescue crews.

Earlier this week, bad weather shrouded Islamabad when a passenger plane crashed, killing all 152 on board.