Pakistan floods ‘hit 12m people’ — ‘It’s a catastrophe, and that’s no overstatement’– Monsoon rains to continue for weeks
By Adam Mynott, BBC
6 August 2010 The worst floods in Pakistan’s history have hit at least 12 million people, the government relief agency says. Gen Nadeem Ahmed, of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), said that figure only covered Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab provinces. The full figure is likely to be much higher, with at least half a million evacuated in Sindh. It has emerged that a charity connected to a group with alleged al-Qaeda links has been providing flood relief. As well as the estimate of 12 million people affected, Gen Ahmed said that 650,000 houses had been destroyed. He said the highway authority had estimated it would cost about 5bn Pakistani rupees ($59m £38m) to rebuild the roads destroyed so far. The bill for fixing damage to power infrastructure and dams would come to another 2.5bn rupees, he added. “In my opinion, when assessments are complete, this will be the biggest disaster in the history of Pakistan,” he told a news conference in Islamabad on Friday. …
