Unusually heavy monsoon rains in Pakistan will affect 200,000 people, a top UN official warns

By MUNIR AHMED
Associated Press

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A top U.N. official has warned that an estimated 200,000 people in Pakistan are likely to be affected by the upcoming above-normal monsoon rains. Mohamed Yahya, the newly appointed Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator, says weather forecasters are predicting heavy monsoon rains, which begin in July before subsiding in September. Yahya said the United Nations would arrange $40 million as a part of its contingency plan. However, he said this season’s rains would not be as heavy as in 2022 when the monsoon rains and devastating floods killed 1,739 people, destroyed 2 million homes, and covered as much as one-third of the country at one point. Scientists said climate change worsened the impact of the 2022 rains.