Westerly wave: Temperatures plummet amid continuing rain, snowfall

Snow obstructed roads cut off fuel and food supply to villagers.

ABBOTABAD/ PESHAWAR:

Rain and snowfall continued for the second day across Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Friday, magnifying the cold as temperatures plummeted to below zero in some areas.

According to Meteorological Department officials in Peshawar, a cold wave gripped the city Thursday morning due to a fresh westerly wave. This disturbance is expected to affect large swathes of the country and is likely to persist for the next three days.

In Peshawar, wind chill added to the drop in temperature with residents seen bundled up. Resultantly, attendance in many schools remained thin.

More rain and snowfall is expected in different parts of the province, said an official, adding that severe snowfall damaged orange orchids in Lower Dir.

Communication systems were paralysed in Kalam, Shangla, Upper Swat and Parachinar as roads were covered in snow. People in DI Khan were also confined to their homes as fallen branches obstructed the link road in the city, blocking it for several hours.



Snowfall in Galiyat

Snowfall and light rain started Thursday afternoon in Galiyat and continued till the filing of this report Friday evening. According to an official of the Meteorological Department, 18 inches of snowfall was recorded, resulting in more than two feet of snow.

Vehicular traffic was suspended on Nathiagali-Abbottabad road from Thursday night till Friday morning when the Frontier Highway Authority swung into action and cleared the busy route.

Villagers claimed the road was blocked again at several junctures as the snow could not be removed swiftly enough.

Galiyat Development Authority (GDA) officials said machines were clearing transport networks, but link roads of Galiyat and Ayubia have been defunct since the last 20 days.

Both the Communication and Works department and GDA contractors failed to remove the snow, said an official privy to the matter.

Snow obstructed roads, especially the Nathiagali Raitri Road which connects a 100, 000 villagers to Nathigali and Abbottabad cut off access to food and fuel.

Rain

The meteorological department said 34 millimeters (mm) of rain was recorded in Bannu, 33mm in DI Khan, 17mm in Parachinar, 28mm in Risalpur, 20mm in Saidu Sharif, 15mm in Balakot, 19mm in Timergara, 22mm in Kalam and 19mm in Malam Jabba.

Snow

According to an official of the department, about 12 inches snow was recorded in Malam Jabba, 16 inches in Kalam area and I.5 feet in Galiyat.

Temperature

A cold wave gripped the province as -6 degree centigrade was recorded in Parachinar, the headquarters of Kurram Agency, -1°C in Kalam, 0 °C in Malam Jabab, 9°C in Bannu, 10 °C in Risalpur, 6°C in Balakot, 2°C in Chitral and 4°C in Peshawar.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 23^rd, 2013.