Rain, snowfall bring life to a standstill in Hazara

Roads blocked due to landslides; transmission, telecom lines broken

ABBOTABAD:

Two days of continuous torrential rain coupled with snowfall on Monday brought daily life to a standstill in the Hazara division.

Hundreds of tourists were trapped on roads as flash floods caused mudslides which blocked Karakoram Highway (KKH) at various places besides electricity transmission lines also snapped due to falling trees.

Owing to heavy downpour and snowfall in the upper Hazara division including, Abbottabad city, Galiyat, Kaghan, Naran, Thandyani and Kohistan, many roads were blocked by the land sliding, flash flood water entered the houses and destroyed household.

In Kohistan, the KKH was blocked at Kokmail by the landslide where thousands of the vehicles were trapped on both sides of the road which was later cleared.

Electricity transmission lines and telecommunication systems badly damaged by the heavy rain followed by the thunderstorm in most parts of the Hazara division. Several link roads across the division were disconnected by the flash flood and land sliding.

The KKH and other roads were also blocked in Abbottabad, Mansehra and Battagram while the traffic was jammed for hours. In Abbottabad city, due to the choked sewerage system, after heavy rain, all the filth entered houses and streets with the flash flood and swept the furniture and household items in several parts of the city.

Main KKH, Muree Road, Kakul road, Mandian, Supply Bazaar and Link Road Abbottabad turning other residential localities into virtual cesspools. Numerous thoroughfares and connecting roads in Galyat, Thandiani, Mansehra, Battagram, and Kaghan valley have been destroyed by the heavy rain, land sliding, and flash-flood.

More rain and snowfall on the hills of the upper Hazara division is forecast by the metrological department during the next 24 hours which would trigger more flood and land sliding.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 23^rd, 2021.