Dramatic footage of flash flood in India falsely linked to Pakistan downpours

Published on August 28, 2025 at 11:29
2 min read
By Rimal FARRUKH, Devesh MISHRA, AFP Pakistan, AFP India

Intense monsoon downpours have killed hundreds in Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province but dramatic footage of floodwaters sweeping through a hillside village was in fact filmed in Uttarakhand state in neighbouring India. Similar footage also previously circulated in news reports about the flash flood that engulfed the village of Dharali.

"Cloud Burst in Buner, Swat -- A Reminder from Allah," reads superimposed text on a TikTok video viewed more than 78,000 times since it was posted on August 19, 2025.

The caption of the video, showing raging floodwaters sweeping down a valley before smashing into buildings, also says it shows a cloud burst in the Swat district of northwestern Pakistan's mountainous Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The province has been one of the hardest hit by a torrential spell of monsoon rains, with more than 450 people killed in flooding and landslides triggered by the downpours (archived link).

Screenshot of the false TikTok video captured on August 28, 2025, with a red X added by AFP

The same clip was also shared in similar YouTube and TikTok posts claiming it was filmed in Pakistan.

But the video in fact shows a flash flood in neighbouring India.

A reverse image search on Google using keyframes from the falsely shared clip led to similar footage used in an August 5 BBC News report titled "Dozens feared trapped as cloudburst triggers flash floods in India" (archived link).

The footage is credited to the The Press Trust of India, and the report says it shows Dharali village in Uttarkashi district (archived link).

Screenshot comparison of the falsely shared clip (left) and the footage used by BBC News (right)

A similar video was also shared by video agency Newsflare, where its title reads in part: "Dharali Village Ravaged by Debris and Sludge" (archived link).

Moreover, features visible in the falsely shared clip correspond to Google Maps clips and photos of the area (archived here and here).

Screenshot comparison of the falsely shared clip (left) and a Google Maps photo of the area from June 2025 (right), with corresponding features highlighted by AFP

AFP has also debunked other false claims linked to the torrential downpours in India and Pakistan.

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