54 people killed in 24 hours of heavy monsoon rain in Pakistan

Heavy rains have been linked to 54 deaths in the past 24 hours in Pakistan, taking the toll to about 180 since the arrival of the monsoon in late June, the government's disaster agency said on Thursday."In the last 24 hours, 54 people were killed and 227 injured across Pakistan, with the majority of fatalities reported from Punjab," the NDMA spokeswoman told AFP, adding that the toll had been counted at 8:00 am (0300 GMT) on Thursday.