Flash Floods Kill At Least 100 in Afghanistan

Flash floods caused by torrential rains in Afghanistan have killed at least 100 people and injured more than 300 others in Parwan Province just north of Kabul, Afghan officials say.

Flash floods caused by torrential rains in Afghanistan have killed at least 100 people and injured more than 300 others in Parwan Province just north of Kabul, Afghan officials say.

Ghulam Bahauddin Jailani, Afghanistan’s state minister for natural-disaster management, told RFE/RL on August 26 that the floods had also destroyed more than 1,000 houses in the province.

Wahida Shahkar, a spokeswoman for the provincial government, said the death toll was likely to rise as rescue teams continue to locate victims people buried beneath destroyed houses.

Abdul Qasim Sangin, the head of the provincial hospital in the provincial capital, Charikar, told RFE/RL that 68 bodies and 90 injured people had been transported to the facility by early August 26.

Sangin said most of the victims were women and children. He said some hospitalized survivors were in critical condition.

Shahkar said the flash floods occurred overnight in the central part of Parwan Province after heavy rains.

She said the floods destroyed many homes in Charikar, which is located about 60 kilometers north of Kabul, near Bagram Air Field.

Shahkar called on Afghanistan’s central government to deliver aid and provide immediate support for rescue workers who were digging frantically through mud and debris in an attempt to reach trapped survivors.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has expressed his condolences to the families of victims and ordered aid deliveries for Parwan and