Flooding forces residents to flee homes by boat in Pakistan's Punjab

Flooding from heavy monsoon rains inundated villages in eastern Pakistan on Monday, pushing residents to flee their homes by boat over fields turned into vast swathes of water. AFP journalists witnessed volunteers ferrying residents to safety in small motor boats, though many remained stranded in Punjab's Muridke district.

How many people have died in the Pakistan floods?

Flood-related incidents, including drowning and house collapses, have killed 109 people in Pakistan since June 26, according to official disaster agency figures. Around a third of these deaths occurred in Punjab, the country's most populous province. The toll continues to rise as monsoon rains persist across the region.

How are residents coping with the flooding?

Iqra Salman, 32, said no rescue team had reached her after four days, leaving her family without electricity, clean water or food. "We are surrounded by floodwater on all sides," she said. Volunteer rescuers, including Haris Dar, said four boats were actively evacuating people stranded across around a dozen villages.

Even those brought to safety faced difficult conditions, sleeping in small tents in humid heat between the floodwater and the road. Muhammad Ramzan, 45, said his family's house collapsed after water rushed in during the early hours of the morning. "We have lost everything and have nothing," he said.

Why is Pakistan so vulnerable to flooding?

Pakistan is highly vulnerable to climate change and has limited resources for adaptation. South Asia's seasonal monsoon brings rainfall that farmers depend on, but climate change is making the phenomenon more erratic, unpredictable and deadly across the region.

In neighboring Afghanistan, flash floods and heavy rainfall killed 34 people between July 20 and 26, including a deluge in eastern Nuristan province that left around 100 people missing. In 2022, what UN chief Antonio Guterres called a "monsoon on steroids" killed around 1,700 people and submerged huge areas of Pakistan.