Rain, windstorm wreak havoc in Mansehra

MANSEHRA: Heavy rain followed by lightning and windstorm wreaked havoc as three tourists were killed and two others sustained injuries when a tree fell on their car in Shogran in Kaghan valley on Friday.

The rain also disrupted communication systems in various parts of the district. “Three tourists from Sindh’s Naushahro Feroze district were killed when a tree fell on their car,” District Police Officer Asif Bahadur told reporters.

The rain coupled with lightning and windstorm started at about 7pm and uprooted trees and affected the electricity, roads and telephone system in Mansehra, Balakot and tourists resort of Shogran.

“The police responded quickly to the Shogran incident and pulled out the three bodies and two injured after cutting the tree,” Bahadur said. He said that three tourists identified as Aqib Shah, Mohammad Aid and Amir Hamza were killed in the incident and their bodies were shifted to Civil Hospital in Balakot.

The rain turned the hot weather pleasant but it also created problems for the local people. In Garhi Habibullah, one Mohammad Sageer fell off his motorbike and was pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital.

Meanwhile, two people Gohar Rahman and Ahmad Hussain were killed and two others including Badaruzzaman and Saddam Hussain injured when a car plunged into a deep ravine at Karakoram Highway in the Pattan area in Lower Kohistan. The locals shifted the dead and injured to civil hospital.