Pakistan flood death toll rises to more than 1,100 people, ‘whole villages’ destroyed in heavy rains

By Meredith Kolodner, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Sunday, August 1st 2010, 10:50 AM More than 1,100 people are dead after record-breaking rains and devastating floods swept Pakistan, officials said Sunday. The death toll could rise as another 27,000 people are still trapped by surging waters, and disease threatens survivors in rescue camps. “Whole villages have washed away. Animals have drowned and grain storages have washed away,” said Latifur Rehman, spokesman for the Provincial Disaster Management Authority, The Associated Press reported. “I don’t know where my family has gone,” Hakimullah Khan told the AP. He complained the government had not helped him search for his missing wife and three children. “Water is all around and there is no help in sight,” Khan said. Authorities have deployed 43 military helicopters and more than 100 boats to try to rescue people trapped by the floods, which began last week, Rehman said. The United Nations has estimated that 1 million people throughout the country have been affected by flood waters at levels not seen in decades.