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Local hero saves lives of more than 100 people stuck in Quetta snow

Suleman Khan rescued more than 100 people in his own car, offered them food and shelter

By Nadeem Kausar & Nida Mujahid Hussain
January 16, 2020
Photo: Geo News
Photo: Geo News

A young man from the Kuchlak area in Quetta has been hailed as a hero after he saved the lives of more than a 100 people  stuck on snow-jammed roads in the area earlier this week, reported Geo News

Three days ago, the Quetta-Zhob highway was shut down due to severe snowfall in the Kuchlak, Ziarat Cross, Khanozai and Kan Mehtarzai areas of the Balochistan province.

The situation led to hundreds of cars being stranded on the road, with women, children, and elderly passengers left vulnerable in the harsh weather without adequate food supplies or clothing.

Bracing the cold, the man, identified as  Suleman Khan, not only rescued several passengers by driving them to safety in his own car, but in a gesture of kindness that has touched the hearts of many across the nation, also opened his home to them for food and shelter.

The 30-year-old reached the stranded passengers on his Sports Utility Vehicle, a Toyota Land Cruiser, and helped the people to safety and comfort of his home without any assistance from the authorities.

The kindness by Khan, however, knew no bounds, as he also helped get fuel, paid out of his own pocket, to people whose cars had broken down on the road in the severe cold, thereby playing a pivotal role in getting them to safety.

One of the people rescued by Khan spoke to Geo.tv   about the super-human efforts of the kind stranger. "I witnessed Khan rescue more than 100 people out of the snowstorm, including a little girl from a Danish School, who was then safely taken to her area of Khanozai," said Habib Ullah, a driver who was stuck on the road.

Khan took the rescued survivors to his home, where he gave them food and provided a place to sleep for the ones who had fallen ill. 

“I did everything for the will of God. I saw that people were stuck due to the avalanche and had I not helped them, they probably wouldn’t have returned alive. I had been trying to help them since 2pm, however officials arrived around 12am," Khan added.