Latest News
- Fire Engineering Bachelor's Degree Considered By General Fire Fo...
- MoH Urges Employees To Update Data By July 2024
- Banks Demand Net Salary Compliance For Loans
- Social Affairs Ministry Adds Service To Sahel App For Social Ass...
- KOC Awarded KD 187 Million In Contracts For Deep Drilling Pipes
- Fire Brigade Successfully Contains House Fire In Sulaibikhat
- Kuwait Authorities Refer Kuwaiti Citizen And Expatriate To Narco...
- Kuwait Mourns The Passing Of Esteemed Linguist And Educator Hamz...
- Ministry Of Education Introduces Teacher Licensing Requirement F...
- General Traffic Department Approves 29 Insurance Companies For C...
- Kuwait To Implement New Work Visa And Transfer Regulations In Ju...
- New 24/7 News Channel To Launch In July, Announced By Ministry O...
At Least 16 Stranded Snow-tourists Die At Pakistan Hill Station
At least 16 tourists died in freezing temperatures after being stranded in their vehicles in northern Pakistan, where thousands had flocked to enjoy the snow, officials said on Saturday.
With some 1,000 vehicles still stranded, the government has declared Murree, 64 km (40 miles) northeast of the capital Islamabad, a calamity hit area.
“For the first time in 15 to 20 years such a large number of tourists flocked to Murree, which created a big crisis,” Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, Pakistan's interior minister said in a video message.
The minister said that around 1,000 cars were stuck in the hill station, a town elevated from the nearby area, confirming that "16 to 19 deaths have occurred in their cars."
Army platoons and paramilitary forces have been deployed to help the civil administration in rescue operations, he said.
Late on Friday the government announced the closure of all roads leading to the station to stop any further influx of tourists.
Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed shock over the "tragic deaths" of the tourists.
"Have ordered inquiry and put in place strong regulations to ensure prevention of such tragedies," Khan said in a tweet.
Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry appealed to people to not visit the hill station.
Snowfall, which began on Tuesday night, continued at regular intervals, attracting thousands of tourists. Due to huge numbers of visitors, many families ended up getting stranded on roads.
Local media reported that over 100,000 vehicles entered the hill station.
Videos shared on social media showed entire families, including children, lying dead in their snow covered vehicles.
“Were the deaths caused by cold or carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning?," Dr. Faheem Yonus, chief of infectious diseases at the University of Maryland UCH, said in a tweet. "CO is odorless, lethal if an idling car is buried in snow, the blocked exhaust (silencer) can quickly kill the passengers as they breath CO."
Officials have given no word on the causes of the deaths.
SOURCE : SG
Trending News
-
Ministry Systems Hacked, Electricity Bills Altered
11 May 2024
-
Kuwait Unveils Monumental Solar Energy Project For...
06 May 2024
-
Eid Al-Adha Holiday In Kuwait: Potential 9-Day Bre...
15 May 2024
-
Team To Inspect New Airport's Solar Panel Installa...
12 May 2024
-
Expatriates Caught On Video Stealing Electricity W...
11 May 2024
-
Issuing Work Permits Based On Academic Certificate...
07 May 2024
-
Kuwait Terminated 10,000 Expats Over 5 Years
15 May 2024
-
Whatsapp New Updates Announced To Enhance Privacy...
14 May 2024
-
Ministry Of Interior Extends Biometric Fingerprint...
14 May 2024
-
MoH Updates Employee Working Hours
13 May 2024
Comments Post Comment