The official spokesman said that immediate assistance is being provided to the main disaster area. (Representative)
Kabul:
The death toll from overnight flooding caused by torrential rains in central Afghanistan has risen to 26, officials said on Sunday, while more than 40 people were missing.
State Disaster Management Ministry spokesman Shafiullah Rahimi said a total of 31 people have been killed in floods across the country since Friday and extensive damage to property and agricultural land has been reported.
Government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said immediate aid was being delivered to the main disaster area in Jalrez district of Maidan Wardak province.
Although Afghanistan is located on the western edge of the Asian monsoon footprint, heavy rains during the wet season cause flash floods in dry river beds.
Rahimi told a news conference that since Friday, 604 houses in Jalrej have been completely or partially damaged and hundreds of acres of agricultural land and orchards have been destroyed.
“In the last four months, 214 people were killed in natural calamity-related incidents across the country,” Rahimi said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV Staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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