Pakistan monsoon rains, at least 50 dead this season

Islamabad, The Gulf Observer: At least 50 people, including eight children, have been killed by floods and landslides triggered by monsoon rains that have lashed Pakistan since last month, officials said Friday.

The summer monsoon brings South Asia 70-80 percent of its annual rainfall between June and September every year.

It is vital for the livelihoods of millions of farmers and food security in a region of around two billion people — but it also brings landslides and floods.

“Fifty deaths have been reported in different rain-related incidents all over Pakistan since the start of the monsoon on June 25,” a national disaster management official told local media, adding that 87 people were injured during this period.

The majority of the deaths were in Punjab province, and were mainly due to electrocution and building collapses, official data showed