More than 300 people have lost their lives in the devastating floods in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. There are more than 150 people missing still after the cloudburst. The death toll currently stands at 344 and is expected to increase further. While these are official numbers, the actual death toll is likely much higher.
In just Buner district alone, a local official told BBC that at least 209 people were missing, with numbers expected to rise further. As many as a dozen villages have been almost entirely buried. Authorities have buried many unidentified bodies with no family members alive to claim them. In other cases, relatives could not reach the deceased due to damaged roads.
Cloudburst in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has devastated Pakistan. The death toll has climbed to more than 300, without thousands feared injured. pic.twitter.com/ZtrOyYJmee
— Sensei Kraken Zero (@YearOfTheKraken) August 17, 2025
Locals have blamed the Government for failing to warn residents to evacuate the area beforehand. Residents say that many casualties could have been avoided if there was an early warning system. A school teacher told the Associated Press, “Survivors escaped with nothing. If people had been informed earlier, lives could have been saved and residents could have moved to safer places.”
The Government maintains that the sudden downpour in Buner was so great in intensity that disaster had already struck by the time residents could be alerted. The Director General of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority said that “no forecasting system anywhere in the world” could have predicted the cloudburst.
Damaged Infrastructure stalling Rescue Efforts
Damaged roads and infrastructure are stalling the rescue efforts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. “Heavy rainfall, landslides in several areas, and washed-out roads are causing significant challenges in delivering aid, particularly in transporting heavy machinery and ambulances,” an official told AFP.
Many people are feared trapped under the debris, which cannot be cleared manually. Buner, Bajaur, Swat, Shangla, Mansehra and Battagram are the worst hit districts in the province.
Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur said that an MI-17 helicopter carrying aid had crashed due to adverse weather. Five crew members, including two pilots, were killed in the crash.
Climate Change to blame for Pakistan Floods?
National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) officials have said that weather patterns in Pakistan have shifted due to climate change. According to officials, Pakistan has received nearly 50 per cent more rainfall this year compared to same period last year.
According to experts, climate change triggered extreme weather events have increased in frequency in Pakistan. Floods have killed more than 600 people in the country since June 26. There is forecast for more heavy rains in the days to come.
In 2022, floods had killed more than a thousand people and destroyed a million homes in Pakistan.
