Pakistan floods: Monsoons bring misery to millions in Pakistan

Millions of people have been affected by floods in Pakistan, hundreds have been killed, and the government has declared a national emergency.

On Friday, the National Disaster Management Authority said more than 900 people had been killed since June - including 34 in the past 24 hours.

In the old town of Sukkur in southern Sindh province, worn tents line the streets, as people seek shelter.

Many sit with just beds - all their possessions lost to the water.

The streets are flooded, and plastic waste has spewed out of sewage pipes. Large pools of dirty water have collected, slowing down any drainage.

Residents are worried the standing water will bring waterborne diseases with it. It's been raining all week in Sindh province and there's been little respite for communities hoping to return home to see what can be salvaged.

A number of homes in the city centre have been damaged - left with just the walls.

In Sindh province alone, the floods have killed more than 300 people. Along the narrow streets, people use whatever patch of dry ground is still available to pitch tents, as more rain is expected.

On Friday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said 33 million people had been hit by the floods - around 15% of the population.

The country has appealed for more international aid, and Mr Sharif has held a meeting with foreign ambassadors in Islamabad.

He said the losses caused by floods this season were comparable to those during the floods of 2010-11.

Earlier, climate minister Sherry Rehman said the country was going through its eighth monsoon cycle "while normally the country only has three to four cycles of rain".

"The percentages of super flood torrents are shocking," she said.

Since the summer season began, multiple monsoon cycles have lashed Pakistan, destroying more than 400,000 homes across the country.

At least 184,000 people have been displaced to relief camps, the UN's disaster relief agency, OCHA (Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) said on Thursday.

Southern Pakistan has been hardest hit by the rains - particularly Sindh which has received nearly eight times its average August rainfall.

Ms Rehman on Thursday said local authorities there had asked for one million tents to house displaced people.