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BUNER, Jan 18 (APP):As icy winds sweep through the flood-ravaged valleys of Malakand division, dozens of displaced families in Buner district are bracing for cold biting winter without permanent shelter, still waiting for promised assistance from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government to rebuild their homes destroyed by last year’s devastating floods.
In Pir Baba, one of the worst-hit areas of Buner district, urgency hangs heavy in the air where miseries of flood victims continued. For 48-year-old Riaz Buneri, winter has arrived with renewed hardship and unfulfilled hopes for hundred of affected families whose suffering unfinished.
Standing on the muddy remains of what was once his home, Riaz watches the severe cold settle in, knowing his family is once again facing the biting foggy weather.
“I had purchased expensive furniture for my daughter’s wedding,” Riaz told APP, his voice weighed down by loss. “The August 2025 floods swept away everything in just a few minutes. I am still trying to recover from those financial losses.”
Since the floods struck on August 15, 2025 triggered by torrential rains and cloudbursts, Riaz and his only son have been hauling stones from nearby hills, attempting to construct a single room for the family. With limited resources and no formal assistance yet received, the task feels overwhelming for the poor villager.
The floods devastated large swathes of Malakand division, destroying homes, businesses, roads, bridges, and claiming lives across Buner, Shangla, Swat, Battagram, Bajaur, and Swabi. Though residents are accustomed to seasonal flooding, many say last year’s disaster was unprecedented and a proof of a climate change.
“The velocity of the floodwaters was far greater than anything we saw even in 2022,” Riaz recalled. “Stone houses that stood for decades crumbled like sand. We barely escaped with our lives.”
According to official figures released by the KP government, the floods claimed over 411 lives, injured 132 people, and left 12 missing. Province-wide, 571 houses were completely destroyed while nearly 2,000 sustained partial damage.
In response, the provincial government announced enhanced compensation packages: Rs1 million for fully destroyed houses (up from Rs400,000), Rs300,000 for partially damaged homes (up from Rs100,000), and Rs500,000 for shopkeepers whose businesses were washed away.
However, for victims on the ground, relief remains slow and mired in bureaucracy red tapism. Many are forced to repeatedly visit offices of district administration and revenue officials to pursue their compensation claims.
“Ministers and NGO representatives came, took photos, and left after giving us hope,” Riaz said bitterly. “But even after 150 days, we are still living under the open sky.”
In Buner, where poverty and unemployment was already widespread, rebuilding without timely assistance feels like an impossible climb.
Many families have resorted to self-help, salvaging stones, mud, and wood to erect makeshift shelters, racing against time as temperatures plunged.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) reports progress on infrastructure: damaged roads have been reopened, 65 out of 77 bridges repaired, 234 of 386 water supply schemes restored, and electricity reconnected to all 99 affected feeders. Over Rs4 billion has already been released for relief and reconstruction, with another Rs5 billion planned.
Yet, for displaced families, statistics offer little comfort against the biting cold.
“What we need is not just money, but dignity, speed, and attention,” said Samad Khan, local resident, echoing a sentiment shared by many flood survivors.
Political tensions have also surfaced around the flood issue in Khyber Pakthunkhwa where oppostion criticized poor performance of KP.
Hamza Khan, President of PML-N Nowshera, criticized the KP leadership, alleging that instead of focusing on flood victims, the Chief Minister KP was preoccupied with agitation politics.
“Most flood victims in Buner are still living in makeshift shelters and tents,” he said while CM KP were leading rallies.
“At the same time, the province is grappling with governance issues, corruption scandals such as Kohistan scam, and rising incidents of terrorism.”
“I don’t want charity. I just want what was promised by the KP government,” Riaz Buneri said quietly. “My daughter deserves a warm room for her wedding, not a tent in the cold.”
As freezing temperatures tighten their grip on Pir Baba, a second humanitarian crisis looms in Buner—one marked by cold, disease, and prolonged displacement.
For families already stripped of their livelihoods, winter threatens to take almost as much as the floodwaters did.
The clock is ticking for the KP government to turn announcements into action and promises into shelter. Until then, flood victims like Riaz and Samad will continue carrying stones up steep mountain paths, clinging to the hope that they will not be left out in the cold once again.