16 people, including two children, killed as rains lash Islamabad

16 people, including two children, were killed as heavy rains lashed Islamabad and Lahore. 11 workers were killed after a building collapsed in Islamabad, while five others were electrocuted in Lahore, reported Dawn.

As many as 11 workers died after a portion of the outer wall of a sprawling military compound collapsed due to heavy rains on the outskirts of Pakistan's Islamabad on Wednesday, Pakistan-based Dawn reported citing police and rescue officials.

The wall fell when the labourers working to construct an underpass slept in the tents at the construction site near Golra Mor, Dawn reported. Five workers were also injured after the 11-foot wall fell.

Rescue workers used machinery to bring out the labourers trapped under the rubble, Dawn reported. The workers were taken to the hospital where doctors pronounced 11 of them dead.

According to the Islamabad administration, the incident took place as the National Highway Authority is carrying out the construction of the underpass on GT Road. The workers were in the makeshift tent under the wall to take shelter from the rain when the wall fell on them.

According to the administration, all concerned departments have been put on high alert due to the torrential rains in Islamabad, according to Dawn reported. The meteorological department has predicted more rains in Islamabad in the coming days.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has expressed grief over the deaths. He prayed for the departed people and wished for patience for their family members. He directed the administration to remain on high alert amid heavy rains.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf expressed grief over the incident, according to Dawn's report.

Meanwhile, five people, including two children, were electrocuted in different regions of Lahore amid rains.

Meanwhile, five people killed in Lahore, including two children aged 10 years and 12 years, were electrocuted when they touched an electric pole in Charar village, Dawn reported citing police.

Rescue 1122 said 28-year-old Ejaz died when he was electrocuted from an electric board in Raiwind’s OPF Society. Furthermore, a person was electrocuted in the Thokar Niaz Beg neighbourhood, Dawn reported.

Meanwhile, a 30-year-old Ashraf was electrocuted in Qalandarpura, the report said. The bodies of the deceased were handed over to the families after completion of medical and legal formalities.

As per the news report, more than 100 people have been killed in weather-related incidents as monsoon rains have been lashing Pakistan since the last week of June. Rivers have also swelled due to rains in Pakistan, swamping hundreds of villages and displacing at least 15,000 people. (ANI)