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August 3, 2010

1,400 Killed, 3 Million People Affected by Floods in Pakistan
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UNICEF says the massive flooding in Pakistan has now claimed more than
1,400 lives and affected more than three million people. The floods have
been described as the worst to hit the region since 1929. Pakistani
officials are concerned the rising waters could threaten to overwhelm
the Warsak Dam, the nation’s third-largest dam. Some residents north of
the city of Peshawar have already been evacuated. The catastrophe is
likely to deepen as more rains are expected and conditions are ripe for
the outbreak of disease. In the Charsadda region, Noor Ullah returned to
his village to find that his house had been washed away, along with his
small sugarcane field.

Noor Ullah: "Apart from the loss to human lives, the floods have also
damaged crops. Lots of livestock have also been lost. There is so much
mud in the houses that it is impossible to get inside."

Many Pakistanis have taken refuge in a relief camp set up by the army in
the outskirts of Nowshera.

Absar Ali: "When we go home, there will be no water, no electricity, no
gas. The entire system has collapsed. All our homes are destroyed. It is
a tremendous loss."



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