Amid heavy snowfall in upper areas of the country, nine people have been killed in Chitral avalanche on Friday evening. The victim included women and children, reported 24NewsHD TV Channel.
Commuters and residents faced difficulties as snow blanketed several parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Murree and Quetta. 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.
Intermittent snowfall continues in Malam Jabba, Madin, Bahrain, Kalam, Marghzar, Islampur, and Malam Jabba. Snowfall hits Kokarai, Sangar, and Sirtegram, the suburbs of Mingora. Roads were closed in several areas due to snowfall. Heavy snowfall continued in Murree as three feet of snow has been reported in Galiyat.
Severe cold grips Quetta. Temperatures in Quetta reached minus 9 and in Ziarat, the temperature reached minus 13. Quetta will reach minus 10 tonight at 9 pm. Due to severe cold, water has also frozen in the tanks and taps of houses, causing severe difficulties for the citizens.
Pakistan Army's rescue and relief operation continued amid heavy snowfall in Murree, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.
Pak Army personnel are working to save people trapped in highways and areas blocked by snowfall.
Soldiers are pulling out children, elderly people and women from vehicles stuck in snow and taking them to safe places.
Hazara Motorway E-35 has been closed from Achiyan to Kaspul due to rain and snowfall. The purpose of closing the motorway is to prevent accidents and protect the lives and property of motorway users.
The local administration advises to avoid unnecessary travel. Meanwhile, Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) issued a traffic update for tourists heading towards Murree, advising them to postpone travel due to snowfall.
Meanwhile, Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari has also advised tourists to shun travelling to Murree and Abbottabad areas amid heavy snowfall.
It said all hotels have been booked and more than capacity vehicles have entered in the area and there was no room for more vehicle therefore it is advised that avoid travel to Muree. She said the safety of the masses was the top priority of the government.
Pakistan Army personnel engaged in rescue operations during heavy snowfall in Zhob area of Balochistan
Pak Army's rescue operation to evacuate stranded passengers and the process of removing stranded vehicles is in full swing due to heavy snowfall.
Pakistan Army is continuing rescue and relief activities as snowfall hits upper parts of the country including Murree, Swat, Kalam, Mohmand, Tirah Valley, Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan.
The roads blocked due to snowfall are being cleared and smooth flow of traffic is being ensured. People and vehicles stuck in snow have been rescued and shifted to safe places. Food, shelter and warm clothes are also being provided to the affected people.
Separate arrangements have been made for special care of children, women, elderly and the disabled. Rescuers evacuated dozens of stranded residents to safety as heavy snowfall blanketed several mountainous districts, blocked roads and cut off villages in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Gilgit Baltistan and Azad Kashmir on Friday. All routes leading to Murree were also closed as heavy snow walloped the hill station, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) issued a traffic update for tourists heading towards Murree, advising them to postpone travel due to snowfall. An ITP official said that all entry routes leading to Murree have been closed following overnight snowfall.
He said diversions have been put in place on both Murree-bound routes, and traffic is being turned back to ensure public safety.
The official added that the Murree administration is making efforts to reopen the snow-blocked roads; however, conditions remain unsafe for travel at present.
Tourists have been urged not to travel to Murree until further notice and to cooperate with traffic officers deployed on duty.
He said visitors will be informed as soon as the roads are reopened. For updates, citizens may contact the traffic helpline 1915 or the emergency helpline Pucar-15.
Rescue 1122 teams backed by Army soldiers were operating in different areas of Tirah Valley in District Khyber and shifted over 40 people, including women and children, to safe locations. The evacuees were provided with food, warm clothes and bedding, according to Rescue 1122 spokesman Bilal Faizi.
Around 55 people, who had been stranded in 20 vehicles in Sandana area, were rescued. Rescue 1122 teams from Peshawar, Swabi and Nowshera participated in rescue operations, which continued despite difficulties due to slippery roads and heavy snowfall.
“People are stranded at various places due to heavy snowfall,” KP government spokesman Shafi Jan said in a statement. “Contact with some areas is not possible due to the suspension of mobile phone signals and road closures, however, rescue operations are ongoing.”
Separately, several people were stranded in four vehicles in Bahrain area of District. “As soon as the information was received, the rescue disaster and medical teams immediately reached the scene,” the rescue service said. “The rescue personnel, taking professional action, safely shifted all the people to a safe place and also safely recovered the stranded vehicles.”
The process of clearing snow from the Malam Jabba Road, Kalam and other areas was being carried out, according to local authorities. Heavy snowfall has disrupted traffic on several roads in South Waziristan’s Ladha town as well.
The situation was not different in District Mansehra where routine life was thrown into a spin with no electricity, road access and telecom services.
With the much-awaited snowfall on higher reaches, the dry spell that persisted in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) for over past several months has dropped as the top mountainous Neelam and Leepa valleys and rainfall in plains received heavy spell of snow and rainfall.
Mercury fell down to exceptional extent turning weather chilled in top mountainous Neelam and Leepa valleys.
The inclement weather led to a dip in the day temperature also.
However, the night temperature soared to intolerable chillness in the top upper reaches of the liberated territory.
The Met Office predicted continuation of the rainfall in several of plains and snowfall at top mountainous parts of the AJK during next 24 hours.
There was an hours-long electricity and telecom services breakdown in Muzaffarabad and other main AJK cities.
Most parts of Sindh and Punjab also received heavy rains which added more chill to the already cold weather.
According to Metrological Department, intermittent rain in Lahore continued which added chill to the weather while temperature was recorded at 11 degree Celsius.
Rain in Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Sialkot and surrounding areas also continued. Intermittent rain continued in twin cities and the intensity of cold has increased. According to the Meteorological Department, intermittent rain will continue throughout the day today as well.
First rain of winter season added to the cold in Karachi. According to Metrological Department, cold wave will continue till the end of January and during the next 24 hours, cold nights will be felt with dry weather
The maximum temperature is likely to be recorded between 20 and 22 degrees Celsius from today and humidity ratio in the air is 33 percent.
Winds are blowing from the northeast at a light speed and the air quality of the city has improved after the rain.
Heavy rain also received in many areas of Khyber district overnight.
Due to rain and snowfall in Azad Kashmir, cold weather intensified and several roads in the upper Neelum Valley and the highway connecting Leepa to Reshiyan were closed.
Heavy snowfall added cold in northern areas of Balochistan as Ziarat dropped to minus 15 degrees Celsius while Quetta minus 11, Qalat minus 12 degrees Celsius record and below freezing point recorded in Nathiagali and Thandiani and Murree.
On the instructions of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, food items are being distributed among tourists present in Murree after heavy snowfall.
On the instructions of Punjab Chief Minister, Provincial Minister for Communications Malik Sohaib Ahmed Bharath is present in Murree.
The Provincial Minister said all arrangements for removing snow from the highways and sprinkling salt are active in Murree and highway machinery is present on the main highways of Murree to remove snow.
He said about 13 Tourist Facilitation Centers are fully active and all the staff of the district administration including the highway are on alert.
He said traffic police are also patrolling the highways of Murree.
Tourists present in Murree are satisfied with the arrangements and tourists are enjoying the weather of Murree in a safe manner, Malik Sohaib Ahmed Bharath said.