49 killed in rain-triggered accidents in Pakistan

At least 49 people were killed and 80 others injured in separate accidents caused by the current spell of torrential rains in Pakistan over the last four days, the authorities said Monday.

The country's National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said in a statement that the country's south Balochistan province was the worst hit where 18 people were killed, 22 others injured and 49 houses collapsed in separate incidents caused by torrential rains.

The northwest tribal area of the country also received heavy rains which caused several accidents of roof collapse.

The NDMA said that 15 people were killed, 25 others injured and three houses collapsed in the heavy down pour in the area.

The authority said that seven laborers were killed and 10 others injured when a coal mine caved in due to landsliding caused by heavy rains in Orakzai area of the tribal belt.

The country's east Punjab province was also affected by the rains where 10 people were killed, 18 others injured and four houses collapsed.

In the country's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, six people were killed, 15 injured and 19 houses destroyed due to torrential rains.

The director general of Pakistani met office said that the current weather condition will persist till Monday and a new spell of rain is expected to hit the country from Wednesday.

He said that the new system would engulf the country from Balochistan, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Punjab and other parts of the country which would continue till March 19.

He said that normally the country does not witness such a severe rain pattern in spring season, but due to El Nino climate cycles, the temperatures of the Pacific Ocean is warmer than normal.

These anomalies are the hallmark of El Nino climate cycles, which can influence weather patterns across the globe, he added. Enditem