Dozens Dead in Afghanistan After Heavy Rain and Flooding

Dozens of people have died in Afghanistan due to flooding brought on by a heavy monsoon rain spell, according to a government spokesperson. 

At least 30 people so far are believed to be dead, Reuters reported, citing Ministry of Disaster Management spokesman Mohammad Shafi Rahimi. Forty others are missing, some of whom are believed to be under collapsed houses, the Associated Press reported.

In the Jalrez district of the Maidan Wardak province, about 30 miles east of Kabul, at least 26 people died, Reuters reported.

In a tweet from Zabihullah Mujahid, chief spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Taliban administration, Mujahid expressed his condolences to the families of the dead and injured and added that state agencies are being deployed to provide necessary aid.

“We are saddened to receive the news that a large number of our countrymen have suffered personal and financial losses due to floods,” he said in a translated tweet.

Provincial Governor Muhammad Amin Jan said in a statement that hundreds of homes have been damaged or destroyed in the wake of the heavy rain, per the AP.