MALAKAND: Ten people were killed in rain-related incidents as heavy downpour and snowfall hit parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Wednesday night and Thursday morning.

About five members of a family were killed in Malakand district when a car they were travelling in fell into a river in Dargai area on Thursday.

According to Rescue 1122 officials, the car was passing near Afghan refugee camp in Dargai when it slipped due to rain and fall into the river. As a result, five passengers including a child and driver drowned in the river.

Soon after the incident, volunteers and locals started rescue operation and after hectic efforts bodies of all five persons were fished out. The deceased belonged to Sakhakot area of Malakand. The bodies were later shifted to Sakhakot for burial.

In Shangla district, at least five members of a family were killed and two others sustained critical injuries when a Peshawar-bound car plunged into a ravine due to a slippery road during rain.

Houses and boundary walls collapse in Bajaur while roads remain closed in Chitral

According to Alpuri police station officials, seven members of a family were heading to Peshawar to see off one of their relative to Saudi Arabia at Peshawar airport. When they reached Kotkay area of Alpuri, the car skidded off the road and plunged into the river, resulting in the death of five and injuries to two others.

Rescue 1122 officials said that after receiving an emergency call, their team reached the area and shifted three bodies and two injured to district headquarters hospital, Alpuri.

According to police officials, two of the wounded persons succumbed to their injuries while being shifted to the hospital. They said that a total of five died and two were injured. They said that cause of the fatal incident was heavy rain and a slippery road.

Police said that they were hailing from Pishlor area of Martung tehsil. The deceased were identified as Mohammad Salman, Rehmatullah, Amir Sohail, Mohammad Faisal and Afzal Khan.

In Chitral, intermittent rains and snowfall entered the third day on Thursday, bringing life to standstill as markets and government offices wore a deserted look because people preferred to confine themselves to homes.

The high-altitude villages of Upper Chitral including Khot, Yarkhoon, Laspur, Rech, Terich and Oveer while Karimabad, Parsan, Gobor and Madak Lasht in Lower Chitral received more than one-foot snow.

Most of the arteries including Garam Chashma, Karimabad, Arkari and Bumburate are closed to vehicular traffic, causing inconvenience to a large number of passengers heading to their villages for Eidul Fitr.

Lowari tunnel approach road is open that connects Chitral with the rest of the country and helps in continuation of the replenishment of edible items. The widespread rains have reportedly destroyed flowers of apricot, pear and peach in Chitral as the blossoming season was in its prime.

In Bajaur, heavy rain coupled with wind and hailstorms affected several houses and boundary walls. The rain and windstorm also damaged standing crops and vegetables in different areas.

According to locals, though the rain, the first heavy shower of the outgoing winter season, fell smoothly across the district till late Wednesday night from early Wednesday morning. However, they said that the situation quickly turned to worse when strong winds and hailstorms accompanied the heavy rain in the early hours of Thursday.

They said that rain and windstorm damaged boundary walls and roofs of more than 50 houses in the district.

Meanwhile, severe hailstorm and rain struck Lower South Waziristan’s Birmal tehsil on Thursday evening causing extensive damage to fruit orchards and standing wheat crop.

The harsh weather conditions left local farmers struggling to cope with the aftermath of the destruction.

In addition to this, the prolonged cold spell is affecting children, the elderly, and individuals with health conditions, making life difficult for the local population.

The hailstorm has wreaked havoc on agricultural land, with vegetables, fruit orchards, and wheat fields. According to local farmers, the natural calamity has resulted in substantial financial losses. These losses have severely impacted their livelihoods, as agriculture was their primary source of income.

Published in Dawn, March 28th, 2025