KABUL — At least 30 Afghan villagers searching for gold in a riverbed perished on Sunday in a flash flood in northeastern Badakhshan province, provincial officials said. Along with those killed, dozens were also injured as a landslide and flash flood engulfed the river in the morning in Kohistan district, an area about 110 kilometres (68 miles), from Fayzabad, the capital of Badakhshan. Nek Mohammad Nazari, the spokesman for the provincial governor, said the villagers had dug deep in the river, which had in the past been mined for gold, when they were caught in the flash flood. Sanaullah Rohani, spokesman for the police chief in Badakhshan, said seven of the injured were in critical condition. Fawzia Kofi, a lawmaker form Badakhshan, gave a higher death toll for the tragedy, saying that 40 villagers were killed.

Source: National Post January 06, 2019 12:24 UTC