Afghanistan: Flash floods triggered by heavy rains kill 12

A government spokesperson claimed Sunday that at least 12 people were killed and up to 40 others are missing as a result of a flash flood triggered by excessive rain in central Afghanistan.

According to Zabihullah Mujahid, immediate help is being transported to the catastrophe zone in Maidan Wardak province’s Jalrez district.

“With great sadness we have received the news that 12 of our compatriots have been martyred and 40 others are missing,” he said in a statement.

“Some financial losses have also been incurred.”

Despite being on the western end of the Asian monsoon footprint, flash floods occur on a regular basis throughout the rainy season when torrential rain runs down dry riverbeds.

According to the provincial governor’s office, hundreds of homes have been damaged or destroyed, and the missing people are believed to be hidden beneath the rubble of collapsed structures.

The floods also swept away and ruined hundreds of hectares of agricultural land, according to the statement, and the route between Kabul and the central Bamiyan province remains impassable.