KABUL (Kashmir English): Snow and heavy rain killed 61 people in Afghanistan in the last three days, according to the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority (ANDMA).
It said on Saturday that the deaths occurred between Wednesday and Friday, mainly in central and northern provinces of the country.
The ANDMA also released a map to explain the locations and severity of the crisis. The “initial figures of casualties and destruction” also include 110 injured people and 458 houses either partially or fully destroyed, ANDMA said on X.
A spokesman also in a video message said that a total of 360 families have been affected, asking people to avoid unnecessary travel on snowy roads.
Afghanistan’s main road closed
One of Afghanistan’s main roads, the Salang highway, has been closed, the provincial authority for Parwan said. The Salang highway is a vital connection to Afghanistan’s northern provinces.
Food supplies were distributed to travellers stuck on a mountain pass in the central Bamyan province, west of the capital.
The spokesman further said that most of the casualties were caused by roof collapses and avalanches, while many also died from frostbite in sub-zero temperatures.
According to the emergency department in the southern province of Kandahar, six children were killed when the roof of their home caved in in strong wind and heavy rain on Wednesday. Houses were also damaged in other districts.
A transmission line importing electricity from Uzbekistan was also damaged on Thursday, leaving households in almost 12 provinces without power.
“The technical teams are ready but cannot reach the area because of the blockage of Salang pass,” said Mohammad Sadiq, the spokesman for Afghanistan’s national power utility DABS.
The heavy snow and rain also destroyed shops and killed livestock in different parts of the predominantly rural country.
“Snow and rain, when managed properly, contribute positively to Afghanistan’s environment and livelihoods,” the Kabul Times daily wrote in an editorial.
“However, without sufficient preparation and timely intervention, these natural phenomena can quickly turn into sources of tragedy,” it said.
More than 40 million people or around half of Afghanistan’s population will need humanitarian assistance this year, according to the United Nations, after a sharp drop in foreign assistance in recent years.
