25 dead in heavy monsoon rains in Pakistan

A Pakistani man guides his buffalo through floodwaters following heavy rain in Lahore on Sept 4, 2014. At least 25 people have been killed in roof collapses caused by heavy monsoon rains in Pakistan, officials said Thursday, as authorities warne
A Pakistani man guides his buffalo through floodwaters following heavy rain in Lahore on Sept 4, 2014. At least 25 people have been killed in roof collapses caused by heavy monsoon rains in Pakistan, officials said Thursday, as authorities warned more intense rainfall and flash floods could be imminent. -- PHOTO: AFP
Pakistani residents wade through floodwaters following heavy rain in Lahore on Sept 4, 2014. At least 25 people have been killed in roof collapses caused by heavy monsoon rains in Pakistan, officials said Thursday, as authorities warned more intense rainfall and flash floods could be imminent. -- PHOTO: AFP
Pakistani residents and vehicles are pictured in a flooded street following heavy rain in Lahore on Sept 4, 2014. At least 25 people have been killed in roof collapses caused by heavy monsoon rains in Pakistan, officials said Thursday, as authorities warned more intense rainfall and flash floods could be imminent. -- PHOTO: AFP

LAHORE (AFP) - At least 25 people have been killed in roof collapses caused by heavy monsoon rains in Pakistan, officials said Thursday, as authorities warned more intense rainfall and flash floods could be imminent.

The deaths all came in Punjab, Pakistan's richest and most populous province, with 13 people killed in the provincial capital Lahore.

Pakistan has suffered deadly monsoon floods for at least the last four years - in 2013 178 people were killed and around 1.5 million affected by flooding around the country.

The government has been criticised for not doing more to mitigate against the dangers posed by seasonal rains washing away homes and farmland.

"At least 25 people have been killed in different incidents of roof collapses in Punjab province during the last 24 hours," Jam Sajjad, a spokesman for rescue services told AFP.

He said the dead included women and children, and 28 people have been injured.

Rizwan Naseer, the director general of rescue services in Punjab confirmed the toll and said the injured were being moved to hospitals.

"We have been removing the debris to search for survivors and the injured," Naseer said, adding that the toll is likely to rise as more information came in from around the province.

Pakistan's meteorological office warned that more heavy rain and thunderstorms were expected in Punjab and the north of the country in the coming 72 hours and could cause flooding in major rivers.

The floods of 2010 were the worst in Pakistan's history, with 1,800 people killed and 21 million affected in what became a major humanitarian crisis.

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