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Pakistan landslide after heavy rain kills 5, with 15 missing

A landslide triggered by torrential monsoon rains swept away cars in mountainous northern Pakistan, killing at least five people, with more vehicles buried under the debris, officials said Tuesday.

Flash floods, collapsed buildings and electrocutions have killed 221 people nationwide since the monsoon season arrived in late June with heavier rains than usual.

More than eight vehicles were swept away on Monday when heavy rains triggered a landslide on a highway in Diamer district, Gilgit-Baltistan region.

"One local resident and four tourists have died and among the deceased is an unidentified woman," Atta-ur-Rehman Kakar, a senior official in Diamer, said in a video statement Tuesday.

Nearly 100 homes have been destroyed in the floods, and rescue operations were ongoing, he added.

The region is a popular tourist destination, marked by towering mountains, deep valleys and wide rivers.

Faizullah Faraq, spokesperson for the regional government, said hundreds of visitors have been rescued.

"Government teams cleared debris and escorted them off the mountain road, while local villagers provided emergency shelter and assistance," Faraq added.

Floods and landslides in the area have blocked major highways, damaged communication signals, four bridges, a hotel and a school.

Washed out buses used by tourists were left abandoned on the side of the road after the destruction caused by the landslides.

Rescued families holding babies and carrying rucksacks sat on rocks while rescue teams handed them food at the scene of a landslide.

Lacking disaster management

Nationwide, the death toll from monsoon-related incidents since June 26 includes 104 children, while more than 500 people have been injured, Pakistan's National Disaster Management Agency said Tuesday.

A spokeswoman for the agency told AFP that the heavy rains usually start later in the monsoon season.

"Such death tolls are usually seen in August, but this year the impact has been markedly different," she said.

Monsoon season brings South Asia 70% to 80% of its annual rainfall, and runs from late June until September in Pakistan.

The annual rains are vital for agriculture and food security, and the livelihoods of millions of farmers, but also bring destruction.

Sherry Rehman, the former climate change minister, pointed out "the absence of an effective, comprehensive disaster management system in the country," in a statement released by her office.

In late June, at least 13 tourists were swept to their deaths while sheltering from flash floods on a raised river bank.

In 2022, monsoon floods submerged a third of the country and killed 1,700 people.