PESHAWAR: Nine people were killed and 22 others suffered injuries in the rain-related incidents in Kohat, Mohmand Agency and Karak on Wednesday as downpour and snow lashed parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and adjoining tribal region for the second consecutive day.

Three people, including a couple, were killed and 13 suffered injuries in an accident near the Kohat Friendship Tunnel toll plaza.

The police said a passenger coach coming from Kurram Agency collided head-on with a pickup van after skidding.

Ghulam Hussain and his wife Aaj Bibi along with Abdul Malik of Bara, Khyber Agency, died on the spot. Six women and seven men were also injured in the incident.

The injured and bodies were shifted to the hospital. The bodies were later handed over to the respective families.

Met Office forecasts more downpour

The police registered a case and began investigation.

In Mohmand Agency, two minors died and two people, including a woman, suffered injuries when the roof of their house collapsed in Samikhel village due to heavy rains, which lashed all parts of the area.

An official told Dawn that four people, including two minors, were trapped under the rubble when the house of Niaz Ali collapsed on Wednesday early morning due to which his two daughters, aged six and 12 years, were killed on the spot, while he himself and his wife were seriously injured.

The injured were shifted to the Agency Headquarters Hospital for treatment. He was later discharged.

In Karak, a man and his two sons were killed when their car collided with a Karachi-bound bus on the Indus Highway.

The police said the accident occurred near Shahidan area due to heavy rain.

They said the car driver, Abdul Haleem, and his two sons died on the spot, while three people travelling in the bus were injured, who were shifted to Karak District Headquarters Hospital, where doctors referred two of them to Peshawar in precarious condition.

In another incident, a man was killed and five others were injured when a passenger coach skidded off the road and plunged into ravine in Chughto area on the Indus Highway here.

The locals shifted the injured to the District Headquarters Hospital. The doctors referred three of the injured people to Peshawar for treatment.

Also in the day, heavy rains and snow in scattered areas continued in the province and Fata.

Parts of Abbottabad, Lowari Top of Chitral district, Orakzai, Kurram and other high-altitude tribal areas received snowfall. The continuous rains and snowfall brought temperatures down in the area.

The Met Office said the mercury plunged to two degree Celsius in Malam Jaba resort and forecast more rains and cloudy weather during the next 24 hours.

It recorded 65mm rain in Peshawar during the last 24 hours.

Bannu received 43mm rain, Risalpur 42mm, Chirat 49mm and Timergara 17mm. The power supply to many areas remained suspended.

In Upper Dir, Lowari Top and other areas received the first snowfall of the winter season, while plains areas got rain.

The snowfall began in Lowari Top, Thal, Kalkot and Doog Dara area late on Tuesday.

Lowari Top received three to four inches of snow and other mountainous areas, including Kumrat, Thal, Kalkot and Doog Dara, one to two inches snow.

Snowfall and rain was also reported in upper parts of Hazara division.

The snow that began falling in the morning in Kaghan valley, Siren, Konsh valley in Mansehra district continued all through the day. The area also received intermittent rainfall all through the day.

In Shangla, the rainy spell turned the weather chilly.

Snowfall was reported in the mountains of Lelonai, Kana valley, Speen Ghar, Gamtal, Kollai and Pallas mountains.

Also, Bajaur Agency received the first rain of the winter season, which ended the prolonged dry spell in the region.

The rain began on Tuesday night and continued until Wednesday evening without interval.

In Battagram, rain was recorded in plains areas and snowfall on the mountains, dropping temperatures.

The rain coupled with cold winds lashed Battagram, Ajmera, Chappargram, Peshora and areas of Allai tehsil, while Khapero Soka and Chail Sar received heavy snowfall.

The heavy rain increased water level in streams and rivers.

The rain, which began on Tuesday night, continued until the filing of this report.

In the snow-bound hilly areas, the people stayed indoors due to intermittent snowfall and rain.

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2017