24/7 Space News
WEATHER REPORT
Families buried, livelihoods lost as Afghan storm toll hits 47
Families buried, livelihoods lost as Afghan storm toll hits 47
by AFP Staff Writers
Charbagh Safa, Afghanistan (AFP) July 16, 2024

The death toll from heavy rains in eastern Afghanistan climbed to 47 on Tuesday, as victims recounted how the tempest demolished entire homes and buried families alive.

Some 350 people were injured and 400 houses razed as rain and hail lashed eastern Nangarhar on Monday evening, according to the provincial disaster management authority.

Charbagh Safa -- a village outside the provincial capital Jalalabad -- was in ruin by daybreak on Tuesday, a landscape of sucking mud where more than half the houses were gone.

The home of Sajidullah had been packed with relatives eager to meet his brother's newborn baby when the deluge collapsed the building -- killing the new father alongside ten others.

"When the storm came here, the wall fell over them," he told AFP. "I was in the shop when I received the call and I ran here."

"The stream here was flooding so our way was cut off and our injured didn't reach the hospital on time and got martyred."

- Vulnerable after war -

Among the poorest countries in the world after decades of war, Afghanistan is particularly exposed to the effects of climate change which scientists say is spurring extreme weather.

In Charbagh Safa valuable livestock lay crushed under the rubble, crops killed by wind or water, and solar panels providing precious power had blown kilometres away.

Trees were either uprooted by the gales or shaken entirely free of leaves. Many of the houses still standing were riddled with cracks, threatening to cave in.

"When this happened, we came here and the martyrs and wounded were all under the rubble," said resident Samiullah Raeeskhil.

"Our area is far-flung so people tried their best to pull victims out of the rubble and take them to hospital but it took more time unfortunately."

"These people in our neighbourhood are in a very poor economic situation," he added. "They don't have any choice but to live in houses like this, which aren't good quality."

The Taliban government said it chaired an emergency meeting to scramble local and foreign aid agencies "to provide necessary assistance".

However, villagers complained they had received little help. "No one has come so far to deliver the aid," said one, reporting he had only seen Taliban government security forces.

- 'We are poor people' -

The Taliban takeover of August 2021 ended two decades of war but many foreign missions and aid groups fled the country, shrinking the help available to Afghans.

"We want the NGOs and the authorities to help us," complained Mosam, amid the wreck of Charbagh Safa.

"We are poor people, we made efforts and cultivated our crops," he said. "But they all were destroyed so our spending was in vain."

This year, Afghanistan witnessed an unusually wet spring after a very dry winter.

Flash floods in May then killed hundreds and swamped swathes of agricultural land in a country where 80 percent of people depend on farming to survive.

The United Nations says 29 million Afghans inside the country are currently in need of humanitarian assistance.

More than 17 million people -- 40 per cent of the population -- are struggling to meet their basic food needs, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Related Links
Weather News at TerraDaily.com

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
WEATHER REPORT
More than 60 missing after Nepal landslide sweeps two buses into river
Kathmandu (AFP) July 12, 2024
More than 60 people are missing in Nepal after a landslide triggered by heavy rains swept two buses off a highway and into a river, authorities said. Dozens of search and rescue personnel were combing the site for survivors of the accident in the central district of Chitwan, district official Khimananda Bhusal told AFP. Bhusal said that the buses were carrying at least 66 people between them but three passengers had been able to escape before they crashed into the waterway and were now being tre ... read more

WEATHER REPORT
MIT scientists develop way to toughen up 'good' bacteria, extend shelf life

Space Renaissance International Achieves Observer Status At U.N. COPUOS

NASA Seeks Feedback on Requirements for New Commercial Space Stations

HERA crew complete 45-day simulated journey to Mars

WEATHER REPORT
Rocket Lab Prepares for Capella Space Mission Launch from New Zealand

Europe's new Ariane 6 rocket powers into space

Europe's Ariane 6 rocket successfully launches for first time

Astronauts stuck on ISS 'confident' Starliner will bring them home

WEATHER REPORT
Mars Likely Experienced Cold and Icy Conditions, Study Suggests

Martian Atmosphere Unveiled Through Innovative Use of Existing Technology

Europe's Earth Return Orbiter Advances to Next Development Stage

'Ready to come out?' Scientists reemerge after year 'on Mars'

WEATHER REPORT
Shenzhou XVII Crew Shares Post-Mission Insights with Media

Shenzhou XVIII Crew Successfully Completes Second Spacewalk

Chinese Scientists Develop Novel Rosa Roxburghii Varieties via Space Breeding

Shenzhou 18 Crew to Conduct Second Extravehicular Activities

WEATHER REPORT
Booz Allen Invests in Quindar to Enhance Satellite Automation

Maritime Satellite Communications Market Expands with Rising NGSO Solutions

SpaceX Successfully Launches Turkey's First Home-Grown Communications Satellite

Ovzon 3 Satellite Commences Commercial Service

WEATHER REPORT
Quadrupolar Nuclei Measured Using Zero-Field NMR for the First Time

Researchers Uncover New Insights into High-Temperature Superconductivity in Copper Oxides

Serbia top court opens way for disputed lithium mining project

Amazon to build 'top secret' cloud for Australia's spies

WEATHER REPORT
Unraveling Early Earth's Life and Climate Insights

JWST Unveils Potential Ice World in Habitable Zone

Potentially Habitable Ice-Covered Super-Earth Discovered by Astronomers

New Method to Enhance Microbe Viability for Space and Extreme Environments

WEATHER REPORT
Subaru Telescope Discovers New Objects Beyond the Kuiper Belt

NASA's Juno Observes Lava Lakes on Jupiter's Moon Io

Understanding Cyclones on Jupiter Through Oceanography

Unusual Ion May Influence Uranus and Neptune's Magnetic Fields

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.