Heavy rains in Balochistan leave four dead, over a dozen injured

QUETTA: Four people, including a woman and three children, were killed and more than a dozen others injured as heavy monsoon rains struck parts of Balochistan, damaging homes, roads, crops and power infrastructure, officials said on Thursday.

Officials said pre-monsoon showers that began a day earlier disrupted daily life in several districts. Flash flooding affected inter-district road links, while heavy rain caused damage to houses, standing crops and other infrastructure across affected areas.

Roof collapses in Zhob

The deaths of the woman and two children occurred in Zhob, where the roofs of two mud houses collapsed near Bacha Khan School and in Shamsi Colony under the impact of the rain. A local administration official said around a dozen members of the two affected families were also hurt in the incident.

The official said the victims were trapped beneath the rubble before rescuers could move them to hospital. “A woman and two children were buried under the debris and died before they could be shifted to hospital,” a local administration official said, adding that around a dozen members of the two affected families were injured.

Police, district administration personnel and rescue teams reached the area after receiving reports of the collapses and began rescue work. Officials said the bodies were recovered from the debris and the injured were taken to the District Headquarters Hospital in Zhob. Those in serious condition were later referred to Quetta for specialised treatment. After medico-legal formalities were completed, the bodies were handed over to the families for burial.

Separate fatality in Khuzdar

In a separate rain-related incident in Khuzdar district, a child was killed and four other people were injured, according to reports. Heavy rain and thunderstorms also damaged mud houses and uprooted trees and billboards in different parts of the district.

Rain was also reported in Dera Murad Jamali, Jaffarabad, Usta Muhammad and Jhal Magsi, where officials said standing crops suffered extensive losses. In low-lying and informal settlements, rainwater entered homes and forced many residents to leave their houses.

Electricity supply remained suspended in many parts of the province, including Quetta, because of the weather conditions. Official reports said rainfall continued on Thursday in Zhob, Loralai, Musakhail, Qila Saifullah, Ziarat, Muslim Bagh and other areas of northern Balochistan.