At least 22 dead as heavy snow traps vehicles in Pakistan

Pakistan rescuers were working Sunday to clear routes to a locked-in hill town sheltering thousands of tourists after 22 people died in vehicles trapped by heavy snow.

The resort town of Murree, around 70 kilometres (45 miles) northeast of Islamabad, was inundated with tourists and daytrippers last week after unusually heavy snow turned it into a winter wonderland.

But a blizzard from Friday onwards felled trees and blocked narrow roads leading in and out of the town, which clings to steep hills and valleys at an altitude of 2,300 metres (7,500 feet).
“It was not snow, and not even heavy snow, it was unprecedented... with four to five feet in few hours,” Tariq Ullah, an administrative official in nearby Nathia Gali, told 
AFP Sunday.

Officials said nearly 100,000 visitors in thousands of vehicles had thronged the town by Friday, causing an enormous traffic jam even before the blizzard.

They said 22 people died in vehicles trapped in the snow overnight Friday -- either from cold, or carbon monoxide poisoning from exhaust fumes generated by drivers running engines to keep warm.

They included 10 children -- six who died alongside their mother and father, a policeman.

Prime Minister Imran Khan said he was shocked and upset by the tragedy, but that the unprecedented snowfall and rush of people “caught district admin unprepared”.

“Our first priority was rescue, which is ongoing, then relief,” Hasaan Khawar, spokesman for the Punjab provincial government, 
tweeted Sunday.

“Then a high-level inquiry will be launched and if there is any kind of negligence, then action will be taken against all those involved.”
-AFP.com, 9 Jan, 2022