Nine dead as flood waters sweep away children, relatives in Pakistan
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Students, who were injured after a seminary roof collapsed amid heavy rain, receiving treatment at a hospital in Hyderabad, Pakistan, on June 26.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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PESHAWAR – At least nine people died when flood waters swept away children in a river in northern Pakistan and relatives jumped into the water to try to save them on June 27, officials said.
The family was having a picnic breakfast by the Swat River and the children were in the water taking photos when the sudden flood hit, district administrator Shehzad Mahboob said.
Relatives rushed in but were also caught up in the deluge, which had been swollen by monsoon rains, he added.
It was still too early to say how many children and how many adults had died, Mr Mahboob told Reuters. Nine bodies have been recovered so far, he said.
Four members of the family were rescued alive, and another four are still missing.
The family group were tourists from Pakistan visiting the Swat Valley, local mayor Shahid Ali Khan said.
Locals and more than 80 rescue workers were searching for survivors, rescue official Shah Fahad said.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority later issued an alert saying there were high flood levels and warned people to take precautions.
Tens of thousands of tourists, mostly from other parts of Pakistan, visit the north’s peaks and glaciers every year during the summer travel season.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif “expressed his grief over the tourists’ deaths”, his office said in a statement. REUTERS
