PESHAWAR: The normalcy of life was affected severely due to the continuous snowfall in areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Balochistan, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), according to a report Friday.
In Dir Upper, KP, the snowfall continued in Kumrat, Thal, and Lamoti. Thal received four feet of snowfall. Intermittent snowfall also continued in Lowari and Shahi Brawal. The snow, accumulated on the road in Lowari, was being removed. All the link roads in Kohistan were completely blocked due to the snowfall.
People were faced with severe problems due to the continuous snowfall. Various areas of northern Balochistan, including Chaman, received continuous snowfall. All the national highways and link roads were closed. Passengers and drivers faced severe difficulties. The freezing winds caused the temperature to drop several degrees below the freezing point. People were confined to their roads as the intensity of the cold increased.
Relief operations were yet to be started by the district administration and the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA). In Leepa valley, AJK, the normalcy of life was paralysed due to heavy snowfall. The valley received up to seven feet of snowfall in three days. Five feet of snowfall was reported in the upper areas of Leepa valley, whereas, more than two feet of snow fell in urban areas.
After the heavy snowfall, the electricity supply system was disrupted and most of the areas of Leepa valley were plunged into darkness. The machinery of the Highways Department was there to clear the snow, but they were faced with difficulties due to heavy snow.
The administration has advised the people to avoid unnecessary travel. The Highways Department said that the machinery would start working as soon as the snowfall stopped. “However, the traffic will not be restored in a day.”