Report: Death toll in Pakistan floods reaches 218

Sep 13, 2011, 8:28 GMT

Islamabad - The death toll in floods triggered by monsoon rains in southern Pakistan has risen to 218, with 5.3 million affected, media reports said on Tuesday.

Heavy monsoon rains since August have swollen rivers and canals in the southern province of Sindh, breaching embankments and causing flash floods.

Rain-related accidents and floods have killed 218 people and injured 495 so far, the chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority, Zafar Iqbal Qadir, was quoted as saying by The News.

Qadir said that 5.3 million people had been affected in 22 districts out of the province's 23, and so far 6,8973 hectares of standing crops had been inundated.

The army had been called in to help with search and rescue operations and to reach those stranded.

An army spokesman said that the military have moved 2,100 people to shelters in the last 24 hours.

The government has said that over 130,000 people were in relief camps, relying on aid from the authorities and non-governmental organizations.

Officials said the relief efforts may be affected by further rain forecast for the coming days. The meteorological department on Tuesday said authorities should remain 'alert for the next three days.'

Millions of people in the rural areas of Sindh are still recovering from the 2010 floods, the worst ever recorded in the country.

Last year's floods killed more than 2,000 people and displaced over 18 million, and at their peak covered around one-fifth of the country.