In Brief Afghan floods, avalanches leave 20 dead

Flash floods killed at least 10 people and destroyed hundreds of houses in different parts of Kandahar Province, southern Afghanistan, on 7 February, according to the Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS).

Eleven others, including six women and one child, were killed by avalanches in Farah, Bamyan, Ghor and Daykundi provinces over the past four days, the Afghanistan National Disasters Management Authority said.

“We do not have the resources to assist flood-affected families,” Najibullah Barith, ARCS’s director in Kandahar, told IRIN, adding that the provincial authorities had summoned an emergency meeting to discuss responses on 8 February. He said Shah Wali Kot and Shorandam districts were worst affected.

Afghanistan is prone to natural disasters such as floods, avalanches and drought which seriously affect about 400,000 people every year, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

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