33 killed as rain, snowfall continue to play havoc

PESHAWAR: Widespread rain and snowfall claimed 33 lives, 25 of them in Khyber Pakhunkhwa, in the country on Tuesday. In addition to the deaths, 40 people were injured across KPK and the tribal areas.

In some hilly areas, people took refuge in mosques. The heavy downpour has been lashing most parts of the country for two days. Seven persons were reported killed in Jaswant Singh after roofs of several homes caved in. One person was killed and three injured after the roof of a hotel collapsed in Pindi Bhattian.

Two girls were killed while their parents and two brothers sustained injuries in a roof collapse at Pakha Ghulam village in Peshawar. An official of the Rescue 1122 said six persons, who were buried under the debris, were shifted to the Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) where sisters Sabiha and Hajra succumbed to their injuries while their parents and brothers were treated.

A child was killed and four persons injured in Yousafabad on the Dilazak Road in Peshawar when the roof of a house collapsed. The Rescue 1122 officials and locals shifted the wounded persons to the LRH.

In Haripur, six members of a family were swept away by gushing water in a seasonal stream in the Talokar locality.

Many homes in various areas of the district were destroyed in the rain, which continued for the third consecutive day.

Meanwhile, lightning struck the Jamia Masjid in Akrila in Abbottabad. All mountainous areas in Balakot tehsil were cut off from the country.

In Landikotal, four persons, including a woman and minor, were killed as the roof of a house collapsed due to a heavy downpour in the Ghariza area in Jamrud tehsil of Khyber Agency.

In Takht Bhai, a woman was killed and her three children seriously injured in a roof collapse in the limits of Takht Bhai Police Station.

In Nowshera, a child was killed and others injured when their house collapsed.

In Swabi, two minor brothers were killed and their eight family members injured when roof of a mud-house collapsed due to heavy rain at the Gandaf Afghan refugee camp.

In Karak, three women were killed and 14 others sustained injuries in rain related incidents.

A room at the house of Niaz Mohammad caved in due to rain in Sarki Lawagher area in Takht-e-Nusarti tehsil, burying seven people.

Locals rescued the trapped persons after hectic efforts and shifted them to the District Headquarters Hospital in Karak.

An injured woman Ameera Begum succumbed to her injuries at hospital while Niaz Mohammad and his wife Raham Jana, three daughters Farzana, Muhtaj Bibi and Fatima Bibi, two sons Hidayatullah and Bilal Ahmad were being treated.

Dozens of rooms and boundary walls in Bahaderkhel, Charpara, Shamshaki, Matoor, Gurguri Eidalkhel and other areas collapsed and dozens of goats and sheep died in these incidents.

In Bisham, five persons, three of them from a family, were feared dead in snowfall-related incidents in Shangla district.

Three family members were on their way to Amnavi Malikkhel from Malam Jabba when their vehicle was hit by an avalanche. Rozi Mohammad, Fazal Hayat and Shahid Ali fell into a gorge and were buried under a heap of snow. Local people have launched rescue work.

Around five feet snowfall was recorded in Shangla Top, Yakh Tangi, Ulandar Ajmir and Shahpur valley. Some of the area including Mera, Martung, Dandai and Bisham which had not received snow during the last 15 years also witnessed snowfall.

In Charsadda, A woman died and two others injured in a roof collapse in Gandheri area in Tangi tehsil.

In Lakki Marwat, rain continued for the third consecutive day, blocking most of link roads.

In Mansehra, main roads in upper parts of Hazara were blocked as heavy rain and snowfall continued in the district.

Karakoram Highway was blocked at Dobair area in Kohistan due to the landsliding and snowfall, causing inconvenience to the commuters.

In Mingora, rain and snowfall resulted in the drop of the temperature to below zero.

Tourist places in the valley including Kalam, Malam Jabba, Madyan, Bahrain, Osho, Mataltan and Marghuzar received six feet snowfall lowering the temperature to below zero.

These places were cut off from the rest of the country when all roads were covered with snow. The water level in Swat River increased and the people living on the banks of the river started shifting to other places due to danger of floods.

Several houses collapsed in Bahrain Khwazakhela, Barikot and in Saidu Sharif due to heavy rain and snowfall, burying cattle. However, no loss of human life was reported. In Kohat, a train was stranded when avalanche hit the track in Mankor.

Kalaya also received widespread rain and snowfall for the third consecutive day. The unabated rain and snowfall created food shortage in Dabori, Ghalanjo and Mamozai tehsil besides blocking roads in different parts of the tribal region. The heavy rain and snowfall also caused power suspension.

Shahi Khatta, the main drainage in Peshawar, was overflowing and caused hardships to the dwellers. The most affected areas included Gulbahar, Hashtnagri, Shabistan, Karimpura, Ramdas, Qissa Khwani, Khyber Bazaar, Rampura Gate, Charsadda Road, Kohat Road, Board Bazaar, Faqirabad, Dilazak Road, Zaryab Colony, Nishtarabad, Sethi Town and the Grand Trunk Road.

The district government has established a disaster management cell to respond quickly in case of emergency, Peshawar Municipal Corporation Administrator Javed Amjad said.

According to the Met Office, Peshawar received 20 millimetres rain during the last 24 hours and 120 during the last three days. There was forecast of more rain during next 24 hours.

Heavy snowfall has led to closure of all link roads in Ghazar, Gilliat, Murree and upper parts of Kashmir adding to miseries of the commuters. Residents of these areas have been kept indoors due to harsh weather.

As per Met Office, 15 millimeter rain was recorded in Dipalpur during the last 12 hours, 47 mm in Islamabad, 43 mm in Kakul, 40 mm in Garhi Dupatta and 35 mm in Para Chinar and Balakot.

Cherat crossed the ever-highest record of 148 mm rain. Saidu Sharif received 138 mm rain, Risalpur 136 mm, Lower Dir 107 mm, Rawal Kot 95 mm, and Mianwali 51 mm.

Hilly areas are covered with white canopy of snow. Malam Jabba received 3.5-feet snow, and Kalam three feet. Snowfall continued on the second consecutive day in Skardu.

Key highways leading to Muzaffarabad, Rawal Kot and Punjab were closed due to land sliding. Met Office said that Islamabad, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Sargodha, Peshawar, Kohat and Malakand are likely to receive rainfall in the next 12 hours.

For the next 24 hours, it forecast rain in Upper Khyber Pakhtunkhawa, Upper Punjab, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir, and snowfall in Malakand, Hazara and Gilgit-Baltistan.

Isolated rain is expected in southern parts of Punjab, upper Sindh and northeast Balochistan during the next 24 hours.