Thousands of vehicles stranded, at least 23 dead amid Pakistan snowstorm
A powerful winter storm that dumped heavy snow across northern Pakistan late last week and into the weekend turned deadly when thousands of cars became stranded in the snow.
At least 23 are said to have died, according to Business Standard, citing Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed. It was reported that most of the victims died of hypothermia as temperatures fell to 18 F (minus 8 C). Asphyxiation after inhaling fumes has been given as another possible reason for the deaths.
The unfortunate event took place in Murree, Pakistan, which is located about 25 miles (40 km) to the north of Islamabad in the mountainous northern region of the country.
NHMP team led by DIG/Zonal Commander N5 North working tirelessly in the dark inclement weather, snow and rain to help and rescue the distressed commuters and ensure smooth flow of traffic on the Murree Expressway.
Well done team NHMP! pic.twitter.com/wN9Ne1zyFs— Inam Ghani QPM & Bar, PSP (@InamGhani) January 7, 2022
The city is a large tourist area, and according to reporting from The New International, as many as 125,000 cars entered the city during the snowstorm which led to severe traffic jams.
The region is no stranger to heavy snow. The city attracts tourists each winter as people flock to the region to see snow, according to India Today.
As of Saturday, "Around 23,000 vehicles have been evacuated safely from Murree. Around 1,000 are still stranded," according to Rawalpindi deputy commissioner.
A strong storm system brought heavy rain and snow across Afghanistan, Pakistan and northwest India late in the week and into the start of the weekend, according to AccuWeather Meteorologists.
Observations from Murree show that 1.69 inches (43 mm) of liquid fell in the city from Friday into Saturday.
"Assuming that the majority of this was snow, and using a simple conversion of 10 inches (25 cm) of snow for every inch of liquid, we can estimate that about 17 inches (43 cm) of snow fell could have fallen," according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Tyler Roys.
The same storm brought slightly over 2 inches (52.5 mm) of rain to Islamabad.
"Given the mountainous terrain across the region and heavier precipitation in nearby Islamabad, it is likely even heavier snow fell in some areas, especially at higher elevations, that led to such significant travel troubles" added Roys.
Some reports say as much as 4 feet (122 cm) of snow fell during the storm in parts of the region.
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This event followed a similar event early in the past week when motorists became stranded on Interstate 95 in Virginia.
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