PESHAWAR: At least 16 more people were killed and dozens others injured in roof and wall collapse incidents due to continuous rains and snowfall in different parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Saturday.
A number of people, including tourists, remained stranded in Malakand Division due to heavy snowfall. Army and police teams were despatched to Lowari Tunnel, Kalam and other areas to rescue the people stranded due to the snowfall.
According to a senior official of the Rescue 1122, at least 11 people lost lives and many were injured when roofs and walls of houses collapsed in Peshawar, Mardan, Malakand, Lower Dir and Bajaur districts.
An official said three children died when the roof of their house collapsed due to continuous downpour in Mamond Tehsil of Bajaur.
Another two children were killed in a roof collapse incident in Arang Bado Tehsil in Bajaur. A man was injured in a roof collapse incident in Khar Tehsil.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) in a statement said that 17 people were killed and 23 others injured in recent rain-related incidents in various parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It said that 21 houses were damaged while 23 others suffered partial damage due to heavy rains and landslides in KP. The Authority said that it had launched efforts to mitigate the sufferings of the people.
The Authority said that it had directed its staff to remain alert and efforts were being made to clear the roads blocked due to landslides and snowfall.
TIMERGARA: Three people died and many were injured in separate rain-related incidents in Lower Dir district. Dozens of cattle were also killed in various parts of the district.
In Talash area in Lower Dir, the roof of the house of Zahid collapsed due to landslide. The head of the family along with his wife and a daughter were killed in the incident. Another daughter was injured in the incident and was shifted to a hospital in Talash.
In another incident, a house collapsed in Siar Dara, where more than 34 cattle were killed under the debris of the house. The roof of a house collapsed in Kulal Dherai Maidan due to heavy rains. The wall of a house fell in Malikabad in Balambat due to heavy rains. The roof of a room caved in at Kala Dherai in Asbanr area. Hundreds of vehicles got stuck and passengers faced difficulties due to rain floods in Talash Khwar.
Meanwhile, four Government Girls’ Primary Schools, including GGPS Badwan Payeen, GGPS Shah Alam Baba, GGPS Gadar and GGPS Stanadar Balambat, were partially damaged by the heavy rains. The students remained safe during the incidents.
SWAT: Eight people were trapped alive when a landslide hit their house in Matta tehsil in the district. The local people, police and Rescue 1122 launched efforts and pulled out four bodies and as many injured from the snow. The heavy snowfall hampered the rescue efforts. The inclement weather created a shortage of fuel in the district. The filling stations ran short of fuel supply. This created problems for the local people and tourists. The upper parts of Swat, including Malam Jabba, Mahodand, Miandam and other areas, received heavy snowfall.
MALAKAND: Four people, including a woman, died and seven others sustained injuries in rain-related incidents in the Malakand district. In Batkhela, a woman and her young daughter died while her spouse Noor Rehman and two daughters were injured when the roof of their dilapidated house caved in due to heavy rain. Three women were injured in separate incidents in Aladhand area in Malakand district. In Dargai, one-year-old Umair and nine-year-old Nabeela died in a roof collapse incident. An official of the Rescue 1122 said many others were injured in other areas of the province. He added most of the deceased were children who died when the roof of their houses collapsed while they were asleep.
According to the officials of Meteorological Department, there are chances of more rains with thunder in some districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. They said that Takht Bhai received 80 millimeter rains, Chitral 90, Timergara 83, Peshawar 68, Saidu Sharif 54 and Abbottabad 34 mm rainfall. They said that Meerkani 47, Durash 35, Malam Jabba 66, Balakot 37, Parachinar 43, Bannu 29, Bajaur 43 and Landikotal received 32mm rain. The intensity of cold increased due to snowfall in the upper districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. They said that 8 inches of snowfall was recorded in Meerkani, 01 feet in Kalam and 1.5 feet in Chitral. The minimum temperature of Peshawar city was recorded at 10 degree Celsius while the maximum temperature stood at 13 degrees Celsius.
UPPER DIR: Heavy snowfall disrupted routine life in the district, where Doog Darra, Thall, Kumrat, Upper Barawal and other placed received heavy snowfall. The road leading to Lowari Tunnel received four-foot snow, which disrupted the flow of traffic between Upper Dir and Lower Chitral districts. The district administration asked the tourists not to visit the snowy areas due to the harsh weather conditions. The authorities have also announced the closure of educational institutions in the district.
NOWSHERA: Three houses and a cattle pen caved in the Nowshera district, where heavy rains damaged the standing crops and fruit orchards. However, no loss of human life was reported from anywhere in the district. Three buffaloes were killed when a cattle pen collapsed.
JAMRUD: Five houses collapsed due to heavy rain in Jamrud and Tirah valley in which one person was injured in Jamrud tehsil Khyber district. The local people rescued the injured Rizwan Khan in Shakas area in Jamrud. Three houses collapsed in Jamrud and another two in Tirah valley. In Tirah valley, some livestock were also killed in rain-related incidents. However, no loss of human life was reported.
MANSEHRA: The continuous rains wreaked havoc in upper parts of Hazara as a man was electrocuted, a house caved in and the Karakoram Highway remained blocked due to landslides.
The heavy downpours in plains and snow at mountainous parts of the division continued on the second day. One Rabnawaz, who was cutting the branches of a tree, accidently touched the live electricity line and fell on the ground in the Khania area. He was rushed to a hospital where doctors pronounced him dead.
The Karakoram Highway, which was blocked to traffic after heavy landslides in the Sazeen and Farsh Mor areas couldn’t be cleared. The traffic between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan remained suspended throughout the entire day. The passengers remained stranded in queues of vehicles on both sides of the road.
The boundary wall of a school in the Paghal area of Kaghan Valley caved in but no loss of life was reported. The house of one Mohammad Basharat caved in Kaghan Valley, causing no loss of life. The link roads remained blocked in Kaghan Valley, Siran Valley, and Konsh Valley in Mansehra and Spat Valley and Kandia Valley in Upper Kohistan following heavy snowfall.
ABBOTTABAD: The city of Abbottabad and its adjoining areas have been facing intermittent rain for the past two days while Thandiani, Ayubia and other hilly areas received heavy snowfall of the current winter season, bringing the temperature down.
A large number of tourists were stranded in different tourist spots in Galiyat especially at Nathiagali. The traffic police and Rescue 1122 teams made efforts to rescue the stranded tourists.
SWABI: A private school bus fell into a drain at Swabi-Jehangira road, however, no casualties were reported. The rescue team after receiving information reached the spot and pulled out the bus with the help of heavy machinery.
ALPURI: The heavy snowfall damaged the Government High School Daulat Killay in the Shangla district. The Alpuri-Bisham road was also blocked due to heavy snowfall at Raniyal locality.
CHITRAL: The upper and lower Chitral received over two-feet snowfall that caused closure of all the link roads, bringing life to a standstill.