Heavy floods in 19 provinces of Afghanistan left at least 91 people dead and 49 other injured in the past five days, while avalanches in northern Afghanistan have claimed the lives of 23 people, officials said Wednesday. The most heavily-affected regions were the northern Parwan and western Herat province where over 20 people were dead and dozens were injured, while vast areas were also severely damaged, dpa quoted the Afghan interior ministry as saying in a statement. The highway linking the capital Kabul to northern regions was blocked for the past five days as floodwaters washed away several bridges. The other flood-hit areas were in eastern, central and southern provinces where hundreds of residents were stranded in floodwaters until they were evacuated to safety by Afghan and international forces. NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) spokeswoman Lieutenant Colonel Maria Carl said that NATO helicopters assisted Afghan government in airlifting of humanitarian aid and evacuation of people in western and northern provinces. "Not only is ISAF providing humanitarian aid support, but ISAF has also provided aerial and engineering reconnaissance to enable the Government of Afghanistan to assess the extent of the flooding in 19 provinces," Carl told a press conference on Wednesday. The floods also killed 4469 animals and destroyed some 402 kilometres of paved roads, while thousands of acres of agricultural lands were washed away around the country since last Saturday, the interior ministry said. Another 23 people were killed when avalanches destroyed their houses in northern Badakhshan province since the weekend, the statement added. United Nations and other relief organizations donated tonnes of foodstuff and thousands of blankets to the needy, the body said Wednesday. Rains and snowfalls have been heavy this year, according to residents, following nearly a decade-long severe drought that badly damaged agriculture in war-shattered Afghanistan.
