Floods: 'KP's healthcare system suffers Rs2billion losses'

PESHAWAR: The healthcare system in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has suffered losses worth Rs2.93 billion in recent floods triggered by heavy rains, ARY News reported on Saturday, citing sources.

According to details, the flash floods have severely affected primary healthcare system of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The losses to KP’s health system were revealed in an assessment survey.

Sources told ARY News that the District Health Officers (DHOs) have sent the report on flood damage to the provincial government. The report revealed that the province’s healthcare system suffered losses worth $2.93 billion.

As per report, the flood fully damaged 53 health facilities including 18 civil dispensaries (CDs), two Tehsil Headquarter Hospitals (THQ), 29 basic health units (BHUs) and four rural health centres (RHCs), mostly in Tank, Dera Ismail Khan, Karak and Kohistan Lower and couple of facilities in Swat, Dir, North and South Waziristan.

Meanwhile, almost 155 health facilities were partially damaged due to floods. The floods partially damaged 5 Tehsil Headquarter Hospitals, 51 civil dispensaries, 83 basic health units and 14 rural health centres.

The report further said that as many as 13 health centers across the KP were still submerged with rainwater.

Earlier in the day, it was reported that as many as 292 people died and 351 others sustained injuries during monsoon rain spell that have caused floods in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province.

The statistics have been shared by Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) in a report which also highlighted that 88,390 homes have been damaged during floods in KP.

It is pertinent to mention here that more than 33 million people in Pakistan have been affected by the flooding, brought on by record monsoon rains amplified by climate change.