Flash floods in India and Pakistan claim over 280 lives

• More than 280 people have died in India and Pakistan due to flash floods.
• Thousands of people have been evacuated from affected areas.
• Experts believe that climate change is impacting the frequency of disasters.

This was reported by NBC News, The Yomiuri Shimbun.

August 15, 2025, 22:34 EDT / Source: Associated Press

Flash floods, triggered by heavy rains, have claimed the lives of over 280 people in India and Pakistan. It is noted that more than 1,600 people were rescued in two mountainous regions of these countries.

The floods began on August 14, 2025, in the Kashmir region, controlled by India, and quickly spread to northern and northwestern Pakistan. These disasters have affected dozens of people and forced thousands to evacuate, especially in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Such rapid disasters are becoming increasingly common in the mountainous regions of India and Pakistan. Experts believe that climate change is a significant factor.

Missing persons in the mountainous village

In the Kashmiri village of Chositi, rescuers continued searching for missing individuals after the floods claimed the lives of at least 60 people, with another 80 believed to be missing. About 300 people were rescued, but the operation was suspended at night. Many of the missing are likely to have been swept away.

Local resident Harvinder Singh reported that he helped rescue people and retrieved 33 bodies from the debris. Nearly 50 people sustained serious injuries and were hospitalized.

Chositi is the last village accessible by car on the route of the Indian pilgrimage to the mountain shrine. The floods destroyed the main kitchen for pilgrims, where at the moment of the disaster more than 200 people were present.

Tourists in peril in Pakistan

In the northern and northwestern Pakistan, more than 243 lives have been claimed, including 157 who died in a landslide in the Buner district. Rescue operations are ongoing, as dozens of people remain missing.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called for extraordinary measures to ensure the evacuation of tourists and all those affected by the floods. A helicopter that was transporting aid crashed due to bad weather, killing all five on board.

Since the beginning of June, more than 360 people have died in Pakistan due to floods. According to the national disaster management agency, since June 26 the death toll from the floods has reached 556 people.

Tags: Weather