Four Drown in Helmand as Summer Water Risks Rise

Four people have died after drowning in water in Helmand province, an incident that, amid rising temperatures, highlights the growing risk of drowning in the province and other parts of Afghanistan.

Nasir Ahmad Mohajer, spokesman for the Taliban-controlled police command in Helmand, said the individuals drowned on Friday, 30 Asad, in different areas of the province in the Helmand River. He said the bodies of the victims were recovered and handed over to their families.

As the weather gets warmer, drowning incidents in rivers and stagnant water increase across Afghanistan. In many of these cases, young people and teenagers face the risk of death while swimming, with no rescue or emergency facilities available.

Public figures released by the Taliban administration’s Directorate for Preparedness and Response to Natural Disasters show that 75 people died from drowning in the first two and a half months of the current solar year. The figures indicate that during the hot season, an average of about one person dies each day in Afghanistan as a result of drowning.

The Helmand River is one of Afghanistan’s largest rivers and runs through several areas of the province, where, during the hot season, some residents head to the water for swimming and recreation.