Flight operations suspended at Gwadar Airport till Tuesday due to flood situation n Heavy snowfall blocks Garamchishma road in Chitral n Tourists trapped in Malam Jabba rescued safely.

PESHAWAR/ ISLAMABAD/ TIMERGARA  -   At least seventeen people died and twentythree others injured as heavy rains lashed different parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province during the last twenty four hours, officials said on Saturday.

Heavy rainfall and snowfall disrupted daily life, causing tragic incidents in various parts of Pakistan. According to a report issued by the Provincial Disaster Management Authority in Peshawar, twentyone houses were completely damaged while thirteen partially damaged in the province. Meanwhile, tourists trapped by heavy snowfall in Malam Jabba were rescued safely.

Due to heavy rain in Gakhi Kundu Mahmond, three children died when the roof of the room of the house collapsed, Rescue 1122 said here Saturday. As soon as the control room received the information, the rescue 1122 disaster and medical teams reached the spot and started rescue operations.

In another incident, Rescue 1122 disaster team along with local people rescued the children from the debris. The roof of a crude house collapsed near Noothia Tilab Road. In the inci­dent,15 animals (cows, sheep, goats) were buried under the debris whereas rescue teams have recovered all the animals safely. The family members re­mained safe during the accident.

The spokesperson of Pesha­war Electric Supply Company (PESCO) has said that due to in­cessant rain, 234 feeders were tripped since Friday, while 55 feeders were restored after nec­essary repairs, . He further said that the restoration of the feed­ers is facing serious problems due to the rains.

He said that PESCO field staff are engaged in power resto­ration and a special crisis man­agement cell has been set up in to deal with the situation.

Also three persons of the fam­ily were killed while one infant got injured when the roof of the house caved-in due to the mud­slide falling on the house in Taal­sha Molikhat, Rescue 1122 offi­cial confirmed the incident here on Saturday. According to ini­tial reports, four people were trapped under debris after a collapse, responding to which emergency responders arrived on the scene.

Rescue 1122 teams conduct­ed a continuous search and res­cue operation for three hours and thirty minutes. The rescue teams recovered four people buried under the debris during the rescue and search operation and shifted them to Category D Hospital Talash. The doctors confirmed the death of the four persons of a family.

Those killed in the roof col­lapsed include, Zahid, son of Sher Mullah, age 25 years, Saknanagari Bala. Talash, Wife Zahid age 23 years, Harira age 5 years, whereas child Arham aged three years got head inju­ries.

Director General Rescue 1122, Dr. Khateer Ahmed has stated that Rain Relief Operations con­tinued without any break in dif­ferent areas across the province, Officials of the Rescue 1122 said here. Rescue 1122 services and facilities are continuing in daily emergencies, including rain, he said. Seven people were killed and 5 injured due to the ongo­ing rain in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since last day. The victims in­clude 5 children, a woman and a man.

Several animals also died during the incidents of roof col­lapse. Those incidents occurred in Peshawar, Lower Dir and Ba­jaur. Financial losses were also caused due to the collapse of roofs in various districts.

According to a private news channel report, from Lahore to Balochistan, Karachi, and the northern mountainous areas, the country faces a myriad of challenges due to the adverse weather conditions.

A day earlier, authorities de­clared a ‘rain emergency’ in Ka­rachi as several parts of the province were in the grip of un­predictable weather. 

In Lahore, light rain was re­ported in Gulberg, Lahore Can­tonment, Lakshmi Chowk, and on Mall Road on Friday. 

Johar Town, Defense, Canal Road, Thokar Niaz Baig, Wah­dat Road, and surrounding areas also witnessed rainfall.

The cascade of rain extend­ed beyond Lahore, with cities in Punjab such as Kasur, Murid­ke, Phoolnagar, Sharaqpur, and Jhang experiencing downpours.

Tragically, the heavy rains proved fatal for three people in Kamalia, where a dilapidat­ed house collapsed. Another in­cident in Kharan resulted in the loss of three lives, two children among them. Similarly, Gwadar was experiencing another spell of heavy rain accompanied by winds and thunder.

The drainage system and res­cue infrastructure have been se­verely affected, forcing residents to relocate to safe places.

In Sibbi and its adjacent ar­eas, heavy rains persisted for 14 hours, causing a significant increase in the water levels of rivers and canals. The irriga­tion department has issued a high alert, instructing emergen­cy rescue teams to remain active and ready to counter any unfor­tunate situation. Additionally, in northern mountainous areas, in­cluding Azad Kashmir, we were witnessing intermittent rain and snowfall, leading to a drop in temperatures.

However, the possibility of highway blockades due to snow­fall and landslides looms large.

As the country grapples with the unprecedented weather con­ditions, citizens are urged to ex­ercise caution, and emergency services are on high alert to re­spond to any untoward situa­tion. In the upper and mountain­ous regions of Hazara division, a relentless series of rain and snowfall persists on Saturday, causing disruptions in daily life. 

This phenomenon of rains and snowfall continues into the sec­ond day, affecting district Abbot­tabad, Mansehra, Battagram, Ko­histan and Torghar district. 

The adverse weather condi­tions have led to widespread electricity outages in most ar­eas, further intensifying the challenges faced by residents. In response to the situation, dis­trict administrations of the re­gion have taken measures to cope with the situation. 

During two days of heavy snowfall Kaghan, Naran, and Shugran received more than 3 feet of snow while Galyat and Thandyani received up to one foot of snow which has blocked all sorts of communication links in both districts snow hit area. 

The Civil Aviation Authori­ty (CAA) announced on Satur­day the suspension of flight op­erations at Gwadar Airport until Tuesday. According to a private news channel, the decision comes in response to the flood situation in Gwadar, as stated by the CAA spokesperson.

A new notice has been issued, confirming the suspension of flight operations at Gwadar air­port until Tuesday.

Earlier, the Balochistan gov­ernment had declared a state of emergency and declared Gwa­dar a calamity-hit area following heavy rains that caused signifi­cant damage in the city.

Four members of a family, among them a mother and her two children, received burn in­juries while lighting a stuck school building in two differ­ent incidents in the remote and far-flung town of Pindigheb here Saturday, police and rescue sources told. In the first incident, the house of Husnain turned to ashes as fire engulfed the whole house due to gas leakage in the early hours of Saturday. As re­sult, a 35-year-old house lady, his 4-year-old son Muhammad, his 2-year-old son Jabrial and his 31-year-old sister-in-law re­ceived burn injuries. On getting information, the Rescue 1122 teams rushed to the spot and ex­tinguished the fire. 

The injured were taken to Te­hsil Headquarters Hospital Pin­digheb, from where the house lady was shifted to Rawalpindi due to her critical burn injuries. 

Separately, lightning stuck the building of Government Boys High School No. 2 around 11 a.m. on Saturday. The electrical wir­ing and sound system burned to ashes and the windowpanes of the class rooms shattered. How­ever, no student or teacher was injured in the incident. Panic and fear were spread among the students due to the incident.

Heavy snowfall blocks Garam­chishma road in Chitral The Ga­ram Chashma Road has been closed to all traffic due to the heavy snow, stranding around 40,000 people and cutting them off from other parts of Chitral.

Heavy snowfall continued in Chitral and its suburban ar­eas through the night, with two to three inches accumulat­ing in Chitral City since Thurs­day. Meanwhile, up to two feet of snow was recorded along the Loweri Tunnel Road.

After two days of continuous rain, snow began falling across Upper and Lower Chitral dis­tricts last night. The snow has intensified the bitter cold, with markets unusually quiet and traffic sparse on roads. 

Authorities have warned resi­dents to avoid unnecessary trav­el to steer clear of avalanches and landslides.

In the Kailash Valley areas of Bomburit, Barir Rambur, and Shekhanandeh, up to two feet of snow has accumulated. Over two feet of snowfall also hit Midgalshit, where avalanches have damaged the road in mul­tiple locations.

Meanwhile, The National Di­saster Management Authori­ty (NDMA) has warned of ur­ban flooding as it said that most parts of the country are likely to experience moderate to heavy rainfall and isolated thunder­storms in the next 48 hours.