At least 16 people, including women and children, have been killed in recent floods that ravaged Baghlan and Badakhshan provinces in Afghanistan, according to TOLO News. Local officials report that over 500 houses have been completely or partially destroyed.
The floods impacted Dand-e-Ghori, Doshi, the city of Pul-e-Khumri, the village of Morchak in central Badakhshan, and several other areas. Baghlan’s Taliban-appointed Police Chief, Abdul Ghafoor Khadem, reported the worst hit region to be Larkhab in Doshi district.
“Six people were martyred in Larkhab, including three children, one woman, and two men,” Khadem said. “Over 300 houses have been destroyed there.”
In Badakhshan, ten members of a single family were killed along with one other person, according to the Taliban-appointed head of Natural Disaster Management, Mohammad Kamgar.
Victims have criticized the slow arrival of aid. Hizbullah, who lost nine family members, stated, “We found two bodies, but the others are still missing. We need immediate assistance.”
These floods are part of a larger disaster that has claimed over 300 lives across Afghanistan. Hundreds of homes and thousands of acres of farmland have been destroyed.
The World Food Programme (WFP) reported on May 12th that most flood-affected areas, including Baghlan, are inaccessible by vehicles. The organization has resorted to using donkeys to deliver aid to survivors.
“The World Food Programme had to resort to every alternative to get food to the survivors who have lost everything,” the WFP stated.
