Heavy Rain Triggers Floods In Afghanistan, Killing 50 And Damaging 2,000 Houses

On Saturday, an official stated that at least 50 people have died as a result of a fresh bout of heavy rain and flooding in central Afghanistan.

The head of the information department for the central Ghor province, Mawlawi Abdul Hai Zaeem, stated that there was no information on how many people were injured during the rainstorm that began on Friday, and cut off many key roads to the area.

Zaeem went on to say that 2,000 houses were entirely destroyed, 4,000 partially damaged, and more than 2,000 shops were submerged in the province’s capital, Feroz-Koh.

Flash floods caused by torrential rains destroyed villages in northern Afghanistan last week, killing 315 people and injuring over 1,600.

The country’s defence ministry stated, “On Wednesday, a helicopter used by the Afghan air force crashed due to technical issues during attempts to recover the bodies of people who had fallen into a river in Ghor province, killing one and injuring 12 people”.

Afghanistan is prone to natural disasters, and the United Nations ranks it among the most vulnerable countries to climate change.

It has faced a shortfall in aid after the Taliban took over and foreign soldiers withdrew from the country in 2021 as development aid, which served as the backbone of government finances was slashed.

The gap has grown in recent years, as Western governments grapple with competing global crises and growing condemnation of the Taliban’s restrictions on Afghan women.

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