At least 14 killed in Pakistan storms after heatwave

Lahore, Pakistan: Destructive windstorms that raged across central and northern Pakistan after an intense heatwave have killed at least 14 people an...

Lahore, Pakistan: "Destructive" windstorms that raged across central and northern Pakistan after an intense heatwave have killed at least 14 people and injured over 100 more, officials said Sunday.

Fierce winds, thunder and lightning swept across eastern Punjab and northwestern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa provinces as well as the capital Islamabad on Saturday afternoon and evening, uprooting trees and downing electric poles.

While the majority of the deaths were caused by collapsing walls and roofs, at least two people died after being hit by solar panels dislodged by the whipping gusts.

One man was killed and three others were injured by lightning strikes.

Mazhar Hussain, a spokesperson for the Punjab provincial disaster management authority, told AFP that such windstorms develop because of excessive heat, which reached above 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) in recent days.