KABUL, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Flash floods triggered by heavy rains have killed at least 51 people and injured 89 others across Afghanistan over the past week, a spokesperson for the National Disaster Management Authority said on Thursday.
The floods have devastated large parts of the country, causing not only loss of life but also extensive financial and property destruction, according to Hafiz Mohammad Yusuf Hammad, the authority's spokesman. More than 2,600 houses were ruined utterly or partially.
The disaster also washed away 337 km of roads and inundated over 8,500 acres of farmland, Hammad added.
A total of 4,622 families have been affected, said the official, adding that rescue and relief teams have been deployed to the worst-hit areas, where emergency aid distribution is already underway while damage assessments continue.
Afghanistan's meteorological department has forecast continued heavy rainfall and issued fresh warnings of potential flooding in remote and vulnerable regions across 31 out of the country's 34 provinces in the coming days. ■