Death toll rises to 156 as weeks of heavy monsoon rains wreak havoc in Pakistan

Authorities say the death toll from nearly six weeks of monsoon rains across Pakistan has risen to 156. The National Disaster Management Authority says flash floods and heavy rains have damaged more than 1,800 homes since July 1, when the monsoon rains began. Thursday's report says orchards were also damaged in remote areas of the southwestern Baluchistan province. Many of the 156 deaths occurred in the eastern Punjab and northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. Pakistan is now in the middle of the monsoon season, which runs from July through September. In 2022, climate-induced downpours swelled rivers and inundated at one point one-third of the country, killing more than 1,700 people and causing $30 billion in damage.