KHYBER/ SHANGLA/ RAWALPINDI: Commuters and residents faced difficulties on Thursday as snow blanketed several parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Murree.
While a restriction was placed on the entry of vehicles into Murree, a rescue operation was under way in Tirah.
Meanwhile, the Met Office said more rain and snowfall was expected in different areas from Sunday night till Tuesday under the influence of a westerly wave.
Rescue efforts in Tirah
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Rescue 1122 Spokesperson Bilal Faizi said on Friday that a comprehensive rescue operation was ongoing to help the people affected by heavy snowfall in the province.
“The operation is ongoing in Tirah valley, Painda Cheena, Dawatoi and Bagh Maidan on the directives of Rescue 1122 director general,” he said in a statement.
“Twenty-three operational vehicles of Rescue 1122 and rescue teams comprising more than 100 personnel are taking part in the rescue operation,” he said.
Displaced person in Tirah
It should be mentioned that the residents of Tirah have been vacating their homes amid a planned military operation against militants in the restive valley. Hundreds of displaced families were stranded on the road on Thursday due to the prolonged registration process, which was suspended in the evening due to heavy snowfall that began in earlier in the day.
A statement issued by the Khyber Deputy Commissioner’s (DC) office on Friday said efforts were underway under the directives of KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi to shift internally displaced persons (IDPs) stranded due to recent snowfall to safe locations.
“The stranded families were shifted to Painda Cheena School and hostel, and a consignment of relief goods was also delivered at the location during the night,” it said.
The statement further said that all the families were provided with blankets, while children were given sweaters and other essential items.
“Due to timely relief operations by the provincial government, Pakistan Army, Frontier Corps and the district administration, all families remained safe. All affected families were provided immediate relief,” the statement said.
According to the DC office, relief activities continued from Nangrosa to Dawatoi and from Dawatoi to Bagh Maidan.
“Under the supervision of Rescue 1122 teams, children and women were evacuated first, followed by men,” it said. Rescue and relief operations continued late into the night to ensure that all families could be rescued, the DC office said.
On Thursday night, KP CM Afridi had highlighted that the people of Tirah were stranded in the snowfall due to the “forced evacuation”.
“The district administration as well as the resources of the entire province are being used to help them. People are trapped in about three places,” he said.
Afridi said some people were being transported to nearby homes as well as to areas designated by the district administration. He also said that contact could not be established with some people due to a lack of mobile signals and blocked roads.
“I am personally monitoring all the rescue activities. All departments have been instructed to rescue people and provide relief,” he said.
Shangla receives heavy snowfall
Meanwhile, KP’s Shangla district received a heavy amoung of snowfall, blocking major roads, including the Karakoram Highway, and disrupting the power supply to most areas.
According to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), snowfall was reported in most parts of the province’s north on Thursday night, which continued till Friday morning.
It said the heavy snowfall caused the blockade of roads in various districts. However, efforts were underway to reopen the roads.
Attaullah Khan, a resident of Kotkay, told Dawn that his village had received 17 inches of snow last night. He said residents were anticipating that this snow would resolve the water shortage in during the spring.
“I remember this heavy and constant snow was received in our village years ago. We are totally dependent on snow because we use spring water which comes from the mountain tops,” Khan said.
Bakht Alam Khan, the tehsil council chairman of Chakesar, said the community had been praying for snowfall. He said a prolonged snow drought had severely affected agriculture and worsened water shortages in the area.
He said the road blockades due to the snowfall was temporary but would also help them fulfil their water needs.
Shujat Ali Khan told Dawn that Bisham had last received snowfall in 2013. He said the weather had brought joy to the people, especially the children.
Restriction on entry of vehicles into Murree
Snowfall also started in Murree on Thursday evening, and a Met official told Dawn on Friday afternoon that some areas in the city had received up to two feet of snow until then.
“Up to 14 inches of snow was recorded in the Sunny Bank area while Galliyat and areas in the north of the city experienced even more snowfall,” he said.
Murree Deputy Commissioner Agha Zaheer Shirazi told Dawn that a restriction had been placed on the entry of vehicles in the city in view of the weather situation.
However, no road had been closed thus far, and tourists who had reached Murree earlier were getting around the city without any restriction.
The district administration was monitoring the situation, he added.
Weather forecast
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) forecast more rain and snowfall from Sunday night till Tuesday in different parts of the country.
“A westerly wave is likely to approach western parts of the country on January 25 (Sunday) and likely to grip upper parts of the country on January 26,” the Met Office said.
Under its influence, rain-wind/thunderstorm with snowfall was expected in parts of Balochistan, namely Quetta, Ziarat, Chaman, Pishin, Qila Abdullah, Qila Saifullah, Noshki, Harnai, Zhob, Kalat, Barkhan, Sibi, Loralai, Turbat, Gawadar, Jiwani, Kech, Awaran, Chaghi, Panjgur, Khuzdar, Washuk and Kharan, on the night of January 25 and on January 26.
It added that rain was also expected in parts upper Sindh — Sukkur, Larkana, Jacobabad and Dadu — on January 26.
“Rain-wind/thunderstorm with snowfall (few heavy snowfall) is also expected in Gilgit-Baltistan (Diamir, Astore, Ghizer, Skardu, Hunza, Gilgit, Ganche, Shigar), Kashmir (Neelum Valley, Muzaffarabad, Poonch, Hattian, Bagh, Rawalakot, Haveli), Chitral, Dir, Swat, Kalam, Shangla, Kohistan, Battagram, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Buner, Peshawar, Nowshera, Swabi, Malakand, Mardan, Kohat, Kurram, Khyber, Hangu, Bajaur, Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan, Waziristan, Murree, Galliyat, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Chakwal, Attock, Mandi Bahauddin, Sialkot, Narowal, Lahore, Sheikhupura, Gujrat Sargodha, Mianwali, Gujranwala, Multan, Layyah, Bhakkar, Dera Ghazi Khan on January 26 and 27 with occasional gaps,” the forecast said.
