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Rains, landslides kill 9 in PoK

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AFP Islamabad
At least nine people have been killed during five days of torrential rain and landslides in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), emergency officials said today.

The deaths came as water channels swelled and people were left trapped in landslides in four mountainous districts of Kashmir.

The latest casualties bring the overall death toll from this year's monsoon floods to at least 22, with over 200 buildings washed away in the worst-affected north.

Officials said the death toll and losses could increase because communication from the remote areas had been hampered due to heavy rains.

"According to available collective figures, so far nine people have been killed and seven others were injured," Zaheer Qureshi, director general of the disaster management authority, told AFP.
 

"Up to 47 houses have been damaged while we are yet to get information from the cut-off remote mountainous villages," he said.

Yesterday, four people were killed when their pick-up truck was swept away by a seasonal stream in southwest Pakistan.

Every year since 2010, which saw the worst floods in Pakistan's history, the country has experienced serious inundations that kill hundreds and wipe out millions of acres of prime farmland, harming the heavily agrarian economy.

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First Published: Jul 24 2015 | 12:22 AM IST

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