Heavy rain, hail kill 29 in Afghanistan

Kabul: Heavy rain and hailstorms have killed 29 people in two provinces in Afghanistan.

According to the media report, local authorities said that 21 people were killed and six injured in the western province of Farah. The people were members of two families who had gone for a picnic. In the southern province of Kandahar, eight people, including women and children, died in different places due to heavy rains.

According to a statement from the local disaster management department in Kandahar, four women who were busy washing clothes were swept away by floodwaters, of which only one survived. In addition, a child drowned, while a woman and three children died when a roof collapsed on a family.

Afghanistan, one of the poorest countries in the world after decades of war, is facing severe weather conditions due to climate change. The country is ranked sixth on the list of countries affected by climate change. Drought, flooding, land degradation, and reduced agricultural production are the main problems here.

Flash floods in May last year killed hundreds of people and damaged vast agricultural lands where 80 percent of the population depends on agriculture.