Pak monsoon toll rises to 657, over 1,000 injured
PESHAWAR, Aug 18: Pakistan has experienced a devastating monsoon season, with 657 people dead and nearly 1,000 injured since late June. Heavy monsoon rains are expected to persist until August 22, with two to three more spells expected in September. This year’s monsoon season ranks among the most destructive in recent memory. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the worst-hit province, with 390 deaths. Punjab recorded 164 deaths, Sindh recorded 28 deaths, and Balochistan recorded 20 deaths. Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir have also experienced heavy rains. Around 150 people are missing from Buner and Shangla districts. The provincial government has released PKR 1.5 billion for relief activities and is deploying five armed forces helicopters for rescue operations. The PM’s Relief Package has dispatched truckloads of supplies to affected districts, including food rations, tents, and medicines. The education department reports that the rains and flash floods have destroyed 61 government schools and partially damaged 414 others in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. (PTI)
Two officers killed, one injured in Utah shooting
Tremonton (US), Aug 18: Two police officers were shot and killed in a northern Utah city and a man was taken into custody, authorities said Monday. The officers were responding to a domestic disturbance call Sunday in a neighbourhood in Tremonton. A sheriff’s deputy and a police dog who also responded were wounded and were hospitalised in fair condition, police said. After the officers were shot, bystanders persuaded the man to put down his weapon, police said. SWAT teams responded to clear the home and verify that there was no further threat, police said. “Upon arrival, they immediately began taking fire,” Police Detective Crystal Beck of neighbouring Brigham City told reporters earlier. “They requested additional units. And then stopped answering their radio.” The man was arrested on charges of aggravated murder, police said in a news release. His name was not immediately released. Tremonton, which has about 10,000 people, is about 121 km north of Salt Lake City. (AP)
40 missing after boat capsizes in Nigeria
ABUJA, Aug 18: At least 40 people are missing after a boat capsized on a river in northwestern Nigeria, causing a series of deadly boat mishaps. The accident occurred around the Goronyo area in Sokoto state, while the boat was transporting passengers to a market. Only 10 people have been rescued, and the incident is the latest in a series of deadly boat mishaps on Nigerian waterways, often caused by overloaded and poorly maintained vessels. Last month, a boat transporting passengers to a market in north-central Nigeria capsized, killing at least 25 people. Analysts blame weak enforcement by regulatory authorities for many boats operating without life jackets. (AP)