KABUL, Afghanistan — Severe storms bringing torrential rainfall have unleashed deadly flooding and landslides across Afghanistan, claiming 77 lives and injuring 137 people during a devastating 10-day period, according to the nation’s Disaster Management Authority announced Saturday.
Weather forecasters predict additional rainfall in the coming days across the region, prompting officials to urge citizens to avoid riverbanks and flood-prone locations.
Afghanistan, one of the world’s poorest nations, faces extreme vulnerability to severe weather conditions, with dozens already perishing from weather-related disasters this year. Earlier seasonal heavy snowfall and sudden flood events claimed multiple lives throughout the country.
The latest fatalities include 26 deaths recorded within the last two days, disaster officials reported. The destructive weather has completely leveled 793 residences while damaging an additional 2,673 homes, and obliterated approximately 210 miles of roadways through flooding and mudslides.
Commercial establishments, farmland, water sources, and irrigation systems have suffered extensive damage, impacting more than 5,800 families across the affected regions, authorities confirmed.
Multiple major highways linking Afghanistan’s capital city to outlying provinces have sustained flood and landslide damage, forcing motorists to navigate lengthy alternate routes to reach Kabul, according to Public Works Ministry spokesman Ashraf Haqshinas on Saturday.
The critical Kabul-Jalalabad highway, serving as the primary corridor between the capital and Pakistan’s border along with eastern Afghan provinces, remains closed. Mudslides, falling rocks, and floodwaters blocked this vital route Thursday morning, with repair teams actively working to restore access, Haqshinas reported.
Transportation officials are advising motorists to exercise extreme caution when traveling through storm-affected regions.
Floodwaters have also forced closure of the Salang Pass, a crucial high-altitude route through the Hindu Kush mountains connecting Kabul with northern territories, including the significant urban centers of Kunduz and Mazar-e-Sharif.
Afghanistan regularly experiences deadly flash flooding triggered by heavy precipitation and snowmelt, often resulting in dozens or hundreds of casualties during single events. Spring flooding in 2024 resulted in over 300 fatalities nationwide.
