More than half a million people have been forced to flee their homes in Pakistan after severe flooding in the eastern Punjab province. Officials say rivers have swelled to dangerous levels over the past 24 hours, prompting mass evacuations.
The latest evacuations bring the total number of displaced people since last month to 1.8 million, according to Punjab Relief Commissioner Nabeel Javed. He said evacuations were ongoing in the worst-hit Muzaffargarh district and other areas.
Muzaffargarh and Multan are among the areas hardest hit, with 3,900 villages inundated after the Ravi, Sutlej and Chenab rivers burst their banks two weeks ago. The government has set up tents for displaced families in Muzaffargarh, Narowal and Kasur.
Residents described rushing to safety after urgent flood warnings. Ghulam Abbas, 54, who fled his village with his family, said mosque loudspeakers announced a massive surge was coming. “Those who thought the waters wouldn’t reach them are now being rescued by boat,” he said, adding that his home was submerged overnight.
Irfan Ali Kathia, director general of the provincial Disaster Management Authority, said thousands of rescuers were involved in relief operations, with the military deployed to transport people and animals. “Our priority is to save lives as this is the worst flooding in Punjab’s history,” he said, blaming heavy monsoon rains and water released from dams in India.
India sent an alert to Islamabad via diplomatic channels on Thursday about possible cross-border flooding, the third such alert this week. The National Disaster Management Authority warned that floodwaters could surge into the Indus river, threatening areas in southern Sindh province.
