Landslides cut off upper Khanpur village as monsoon rains wreak havoc

HARIPUR: Monsoon rains wreaked havoc in upper Khanpur’s Jandi village as landslides cut off the area’s road access to Khanpur, leaving residents stranded and struggling without assistance.

So far, no relief efforts have been initiated by the administration, sources said.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Khanpur Vice-President Chaudhry Ijaz told journalists over the phone that the torrential monsoon downpour has devastated the upper Khanpur region.

Sources said that flash floods caused by the stormy rain overflowed seasonal streams, breaking protective roadside barriers and allowing water to flood homes, damaging valuable belongings.

In village Jandi, the roof of resident Muhammad Sajjad collapsed, destroying household items. Torrential rainfall caused severe flooding in streams across upper Khanpur, breaking bridges and roadside barriers in several villages, cutting off road access for dozens of villages to Khanpur.

Floodwaters stranded many people along routes who were rescued with great difficulty through self-help.

Traffic remained suspended for hours due to flooding in the Neelan stream, where six electricity poles were also swept away.

Chaudhry Ijaz said that while the Pakistan Meteorological Department has forecast more intense monsoon rains across the country, including another strong wave, the Khanpur administration were busy in photosession only.

Representing the upper Khanpur region, Chaudhry Ijaz appealed to the Haripur deputy commissioner to immediately launch relief operations in the affected areas and issue urgent orders to clear the Hali Road, which has been blocked at several points due to landslides so that travel facilities for the residents of upper Khanpur can be restored.

The roads have been blocked for the past three days, he said.