A "mini-cyclone" tore through Pakistan's Peshawar area Monday, killing 45 residents and injuring 200, Reuters reported.
Officials said army teams began conducting rescue operations in the northern Peshawar region after the storm tore the rooves off of buildings and brought down trees and power lines, causing "destruction on such a large scale," said Mushtaq Shah, director general of the Meteorological Office in Peshawar.
"We've never experienced such a devastating wind storm before in this region," Shah told Reuters. "It's a completely new phenomenon in this region."
At a speed of more than 120 kph (75 mph), the wind damaged infrastructure and telecommunication services, district official Riaz Mehsud said.
Two flights carrying aid to Nepal for earthquake survivors were canceled due to the weather, Reuters reported.
