Floods in Afghanistan claim about 40 lives

CNN
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Around 40 people have died and 347 injured in floods caused by heavy rains in eastern Afghanistan, the Ministry of Health said on Tuesday.

The Health Ministry added that numerous houses had been destroyed by the storms. According to the aid organization Save the Children, around 1,500 children had to flee their homes.

Save the Children also said the storms had damaged a reception centre in Torkham that had been set up to support some of the 650,000 Afghans who have returned to the country since September 2023 after being displaced from Pakistan amid a crackdown on migrants.

According to the International Rescue Committee (IRC), many people are stranded and have no access to basic needs.

The emergency personnel responded by providing medical services “with full commitment,” the Ministry of Health said.

The IRC has deployed a mobile health team to the worst affected areas in Nangarhar province and is preparing to deploy two more emergency teams.

“The loss of life and devastation in flood-affected areas is a new disaster for Afghanistan. Our thoughts are with the people affected by this tragedy and the first responders working to rescue families and individuals and provide medical care,” said Salma ben Aissa, Director of IRC Afghanistan.

The storms came just two months after severe flooding and rains in the northeast of the country killed more than 300 people and destroyed more than 1,000 homes, according to the World Food Programme.