Pakistan: As many as 14,000 people were evacuated from flood-hit areas in eastern regions of Pakistan in recent days after monsoon rains caused rivers to swell, officials said. Monsoon rains began lashing the South Asian country in late June and since then, at least 91 people have died in weather-related incidents across the country.
Mohsin Naqvi, a top official in eastern Punjab province, tweeted Friday that he visited flood-hit areas. The evacuations began earlier this week after neighbouring India diverted waters from dams into the Ravi River, which flows from India into Pakistan. An overflowing Sutlej River has also inundated villages in various parts of the province.
According to the national weather agency, rains will continue this week to lash the southwestern Baluchistan and southern Sindh provinces, where thousands died in floods last summer. The floods affected 33 million people and killed 1,739 in Pakistan. They also caused $30 billion in damage to the country's economy. The monsoon season began in July and will continue until September.
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