Floods kill hundreds in Afghanistan

KABUL - Torrential rains have killed more than 200 people and destroyed thousands of houses in several parts of Afghanistan.

The worst hit areas were Deh Rawud district in the rugged central Uruzgan province and the western provinces of Farah and Herat, officials said.

"The deaths of 115 have been confirmed ... while thousands of homes have been destroyed," Uruzgan's Governor, Jan Mohammad Khan, said, adding that many more people were missing.

United States military helicopters rescued around 250 people in the Deh Rawud District, some 70km northeast of Kandahar, after the Helmand River burst its banks.

In Farah 68 people died as a result of floods, its Governor, Assadullah Falah, said.

Officials reported 40 more deaths in Faryab and Ghor provinces.

"We have reports of total destruction of 7800 houses in Farah," Falah said.

Large numbers of livestock had been killed.

Some 2500 houses had collapsed in Herat province.

- REUTERS