Umm Muhammed Umar

Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif is pleading for international help as the struggle continues to have thousands evacuated from almost 200 000 damaged homes. A state of emergency has been declared.

The foundations of a luxurious tourist 150-room hotel in Pakistan, the New Honeymoon Hotel in Kalam, had been washed away by the floods completely, causing it to collapse. A video shows the roof and windows of the hotel sliding away before the building falls backwards, and within seconds nothing appears to remains of the structure that stood only moments before. According to the report, there were no casualties as tourists and staff, following government evacuation instructions, fled on Wednesday.

Mail online reports that monsoon rains, which usually begin in July, had begun in June this year. Sharif has blamed ‘the horrors of climate change’. He said the devastation caused by rains and floods this time was worse than in 2010, when 1 700 people had been killed in floods. Meanwhile, climate change minister, Sherry Rehman, said, “This is a humanitarian disaster of epic proportions, thousands are without shelter, many are without food and people are stranded.”

While floodwaters have receded in some areas, the situation deteriorated in Sindh province. Residents had had to be evacuated by boat. Thousands are now living in makeshift homes and tents. The United Nations has allocated $3 million for UN aid agencies and their partners in Pakistan to use for health, nutrition, food and water, and sanitation services in flood-affected areas.

The death toll stands at 937 since mid-June due to floods, with over a third being children.