Cold weather kills 41 across the country

ISLAMABAD – Severe winter weather and heavy snowfall killed at least 41 people across the country in the last 24 hours.

According to provincial disaster management Chief Imran Zarkon, about 22 people died mainly in roofs collapsed incidents amid heavy snowfall in Balochistan.

The heavy snowfall had forced closures of many highways, with some parts in the province under six inches of snow.

Heavy rains killed three people in Punjab province while 15 others died in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).

Meanwhile, five persons including two women were buried alive and three others injured, in two separate incidents of snow avalanches in the snow-clad Neelam valley of the AJK during the last 24 hours.

In Sindh, one person lost his life as a result of heavy rains in Sukkur.

Hundreds of passengers, including women and infants, were stuck on the roads in harsh weather on Monday night as a massive snowstorm wreaked havoc in different parts of Balochistan.

Levies officials said that more than 500 passengers were stranded in Kan Mehtarzai area of Killa Saifullah district, where temperatures dipped to as low as -14°C while heavy snowfall and strong winds almost buried cars on the main National Highway.

Emergency had been declared in seven districts of Balochistan, which were badly affected due to heavy rain and snowfall.

Meanwhile, the Met Office has issued warning of Risk of closure of inter cities connecting roads due to heavy snowfall and rains in the districts of Swat, Kohistan, Shangla, Buner, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Murree, Galyat, Neelum, Bagh, Haveli, Rawalakot, Astore, Hunza and Skardu. 

It has also warned that Heavy rains may trigger landslides and Avalanches in Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, Malakand and Hazara districts.