Dozens dead in Pakistan and India after floods and landslides

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Indian soldiers search for survivors after landslide in Uttarakhand state - 2 July handoutImage source, AFP
Image caption,
Indian soldiers search for survivors after landslide in Uttarakhand state

At least 58 people have been killed in northern Pakistan and India by flash floods and landslides triggered by heavy monsoon rains.

Floods in the Chitral district of Pakistan damaged houses and a mosque killing at least 30, officials said.

Another 28 are now known to have died in floods and landslides in India's Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh states in recent days.

Hundreds die in South Asian monsoon season floods every year.

Bad weather has hampered rescue efforts in both countries.

Flash floods hit the village of Arsun, in Chitral, overnight from Saturday to Sunday.

Several people offering special Ramadan evening prayers in the local mosque were killed, local officials said, adding that women and children were among the dead.

Panic

A spokesman for the disaster management authority said there was panic in the area as hundreds rushed to flee their homes.

Dozens of houses were also swept away as well as an army post, leaving eight members of the security forces missing.

Chitral is a mountainous area in Pakistan's far north, bordering Afghanistan. Flooding in the same area last year left several dead and destroyed bridges.

In northern India, officials said the death toll after Friday's heavy rains caused flooding and landslides, had risen to 18 in Uttarakhand and 10 in Arunachal Pradesh.

Image source, AFP
Image caption,
Floods in Chitral have killed at least 30 people
Image source, AFP
Image caption,
At least 15 people have died in the mountainous district of Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand

Several villages have been buried and a national highway is partially blocked.

The worst-affected villages in Uttarakhand are in the remote mountainous districts of Pithoragarh and Chamoli, where 18 people have died.

Many people were trapped under toppled houses and debris from the landslides, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat said.

Uttarakhand was also badly hit by deadly flooding and landslides in 2013.

Authorities had confirmed that some 600 people had died in the disaster, but later said more than 5,700 people who went missing in the devastating floods would be presumed dead.