Rescue boat for flood victims capsizes, killing 9 in Pakistan

MULTAN, Pakistan (AP) — A rescue boat evacuating people displaced by floods capsized in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province this week, killing nine people, government officials said Thursday.

The boat, carrying 20 people, overturned Tuesday on the swollen Indus River when strong winds and fast currents caused it to lose balance, said Musarrat Jabeen, the region’s top government administrator.

Jabeen said rescuers initially recovered five bodies during an hours-long operation. By early Thursday, four more bodies were pulled from the water by teams including Pakistan Army divers.

The dead included women and children, she added.

On Saturday, five people died in a similar incident on the outskirts of Jalalpur Pirwala city after the Chenab and Sutej rivers flooded the region following water releases from Indian dams.

Rescuers have been working to protect Jalalpur Pirwala by reinforcing an embankment, after deluges started inundating nearby villages, displacing tens of thousands of people.

Many people in flood-hit areas say they are still waiting for help, with some staying in tents and along roads.

Senior Punjab Cabinet Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb on Thursday told residents she was personally overseeing rescue and relief efforts after Jalalpur Pirwala residents complained there were not enough evacuation boats and that private operators were charging excessive fares.

A day earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif visited the city and ordered police to take action against private boat owners demanding high fees from stranded families. “After my visit to Jalalpur, I have directed strict police monitoring of all boat operations,” she said on social media.

Sharif said the government would compensate private boat owners for evacuations, adding that emergency services had deployed 100 boats with life jackets and floodlights, along with four helicopters to ensure safe evacuations and food delivery.

The flooding has affected nearly 142,000 people in Jalalpur Pirwala and dozens of nearby villages, according to Relief Commissioner Nabil Javed. Many displaced residents have moved in with relatives, while others are spending nights in relief camps or embankments.

Since Aug. 23, floods have submerged about 4,000 villages across Punjab, displacing 2.1 million and killing at least 68, according to the Punjab Disaster Management Authority.

Officials said the flooding was worsened by heavier-than-normal monsoon rains and repeated water releases from overflowing Indian dams.

Nationwide, floods since late June have killed more than 900 people.