*Death toll rises to 257, more than half a million people affected so far
*Numerous villages flooded as authorities breach strategic embankment to prevent flooding in Jhang
*More embankments to be breached to avoid flooding in Multan, 200 villages to be affected as a result
Authorities have blown up a strategic embankment to divert raging floodwaters away from Jhang, officials said Wednesday, as the death toll from rains and flood around the country passed 250.
At least 54 people died while 60 were injured on Wednesday as floods and rains continued to wreak havoc in areas of Punjab and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).
According to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), the death toll in recent rains and flashfloods has risen to 257 while 461 have been injured so far.
A total of 581,193 people have been affected by the disaster — a term that covers everything from loss of property to bereavement.
More than 2235 villages have been affected by rains and floods while 325,000 standing crops have been damaged.
Over 18,200 people have been evacuated and over 450 health centers have been established for the flood victims, said officials concerned.
According to NDMA statistics, 2,881 houses were completely destroyed while 9,515 houses were damaged in the recent spell of monsoon rains and floods.
EMBANKEMENT BREACHED TO SAVE JHANG:
Meanwhile, authorities breached an embankment to divert floodwaters from Jhang, a senior provincial disaster management official said.
“This breach was the last option to save the lives and property of the city’s residents,” an official told reporters.
Jhang is home to around 400,000 people, as per the last census in 1998.
Minister for Water and Power and Defence Khawaja Asif confirmed the breach and told Parliament that it was done “to avert catastrophe”.
Resident of Jhang Muhammad Zulfiqar said, “I can see water flowing everywhere and the water level has risen up to eight feet in some villages. Those left behind are on the rooftops of their houses.”
A senior rescue official in Lahore said that some 100 boats were rescuing residents and more than 4,000 people had so far been evacuated from the city.
Meanwhile, the army has deployed seven helicopters and 90 boats in Jhang and the nearby district of Chinot to rescue some 2,500 people, according to a statement.
Lawmaker Chaudhry Abdul Waheed Arain said authorities were also preparing explosives to breach more embankments further downstream to protect the city of Multan, a move that could flood some 200 villages.
NO ROADS, NO FOOD:
Nusrat Mai, a woman from the village of Basti Ghota near Multan living in a makeshift camp told reporters, “The floods have completely destroyed us, boats came to rescue us… we do not have food and we do not have anything.”
In Azad Kashmir, where the flooding began, more than 20,000 people living in mud houses in remote areas are now facing food shortages after roads were destroyed.
“It took me seven hours to reach here and my house, which is 9 kilometres away, has been damaged by rains,” said Mohammad Hussain, a resident of village Naikabad near Muzaffarabad.