Emergency Response in Flood-Hit Pakistan

In Buner, Survivors Recover After Chaos and Destruction

When devastating floods swept through Buner, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, families lost homes, livelihoods, and access to essential services. Among them was Bakhte Khatoon, a mother of 11 children, 8 daughters and 3 sons, whose modest house was submerged, and her husband’s small shop, their only source of income, was badly damaged.

“We lost everything overnight,” said Bakhte. “My husband’s shop was our only source of income, and when the floods came, it was destroyed. I didn’t know how we would survive.” For Bakhte, the struggle was even greater. Living with obesity and recurring illnesses, she found it difficult to walk and access healthcare. “It is hard for me to even move around,” she said.

The devastating floods in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa left families like Bakhte’s without homes, livelihoods, or access to healthcare. In Buner alone, 504 people lost their lives, and over 3,200 houses were damaged*. Across the province, more than 1.57 million people were affected, with 604,000 requiring urgent assistance**. For many, medical camps, relief distributions, and psychosocial assistance remain lifelines as they work to recover, heal, and rebuild their lives.

Shah Raza Khan, an elderly farmer from Buner, lost everything when floods swept through his village. His farmlands were submerged, and the wheat crop he had worked so hard to cultivate was destroyed. “I watched as the water swallowed my land,” Shah Raza recalled. “All the crops I had worked for were gone in a single night. I am old and often unwell. Losing my wheat meant not just hunger, but despair.”

Deploying Emergency Teams to Support Local Communities

Even before the disaster, access to healthcare in Buner was limited. Facilities were distant, under-resourced, and often unaffordable for vulnerable families. The floods further strained the situation by damaging infrastructure, limiting mobility, and fueling outbreaks of preventable diseases. Given the scale of the disaster and the urgent needs, Action Against Hunger launched an emergency flood response to support affected families in Buner district. To date, seven medical camps have been established, providing free consultations, medicines, hygiene promotion, and Mental Health and Psychosocial Support to more than 3,157 people.

For Shah Raza, the floods brought not only the loss of his livelihood but also worsened his fragile health. Frequent illness left him weak, and without income, he could no longer afford the medical care he needed. “The [medical] camp enabled me to get myself thoroughly examined by doctors and to receive medicines free of cost,” he said. “At my age, and after losing everything, this help was a blessing. I felt cared for when I had nowhere else to turn.”

In the aftermath of the devastating floods, cases of waterborne diseases, including diarrhea and throat infections, have risen sharply across the district. Among those affected is M. Anees, the father of a two-year-old named Ahmed. Concerned for his son’s worsening condition, he brought him to the medical camp in Nurbatwal, Buner. There, the Action Against Hunger medical team carried out a thorough examination and provided free treatment and medicines to ease Ahmed’s pain.

Today, thousands of people across the country continue to be deprived of their livelihoods and essential services. Farmlands that once sustained families are still submerged or destroyed, leaving communities without their main source of food and income. The most vulnerable — including the elderly, young children, and women — face heightened risks, with limited access to healthcare, poor nutrition, and unsafe living conditions further compounding their struggles.

With funding support from SIDA and in partnership with Initiative for Development & Empowerment Axis (IDEA).

*National Disaster Management Authority, Sept. 2025
** Rapid Needs Assessment, Action Against Hunger, Sept. 2025