November 14, 2008	Friday	Ziqa'ad 15, 1429

PESHAWAR, Nov 13: Upper parts of the Frontier province received the first snowfall of the winter season coupled with heavy downpour on Wednesday night and on Thursday, turning the weather cold.

The Peshawar city and its suburban areas received rain, while hailstorm lashed some areas, which caused damage to the wheat crop and vegetables.

The much-awaited rain brought a pleasant change in the weather, which also helped clear the fog, which existed for several months in the rural areas. The rain also caused power suspensions in many areas.

The rain coupled with strong winds in many areas forced the people to move to bazaars for purchasing warm clothes. The Met Office has forecasted more rains during the next 24 hours.

Heavy rains and snowfall lashed Abbottabad, Mansehra, Chitral, Dir, Swat, Mardan, Nowshera and other districts of the province.

MANSEHRA: The link of Kaghan and Naran valleys was suspended with the rest of the country as land sliding caused by heavy rains blocked Mansehra-Naran road near Mahandri here on Thursday, it was learnt.

Heavy rain, which started early on Thursday morning in Mansehra, Balakot, Oghi and Battagram continued sporadically all the day brought the mercury down. In Balakot 29 millimetres of rain was recorded.

The scenic valleys of Kaghan and Naran received heavy snowfall and according to locals so far these areas had received three to four feet of snowfall.

Because of heavy land sliding, many link roads in Mansehra district as well as Mansehra-Naran road had been blocked for all sorts of traffic.

The flow of water in rivers Siren and Kunhar has also drastically increased.

ABBOTTABAD: Thandiyani, Nathiagali, Ayubia and Abbottabad received first snowfall of the winter season that saw the temperature dropping below freezing point.

At least one to two feet of snow has been reported in Thandiyani and upper belt of Galyat, while light snowfall was reported in Abbottabad city.

Cold winds have forced the residents of the areas to take out woolies. On the other side, 10 hours of power breakdown has increased the miseries of the public. Power supply to at least half of the Abbottabad city was suspended during late Wednesday night only to be restored at around 10am in the morning on Thursday.

Electricity supply to Changla Gali and other areas of Galyats was still disconnected, residents said.

CHITRAL: The Lowari Top was closed for all kinds of traffic following heavy snowfall here.

The National Highway Authority (NHA) said that the removal of snow had begun and roads would be opened soon.

SWABI: Heavy downpour paralysed life here in the district and its surrounding areas on Thursday.

Heavy rain, accompanied by thunderstorm, caused power disruption in different areas of the district including tehsil Topi, situated near Tarbela and Ghazi Barotha dams. However, the Peshawar Electricity Supply Company (Pesco) staff remained busy in restoring electricity supply to the region.

The agriculture and weather experts termed the rain a positive development, which would have a productive impact on the wheat crop.

SWAT: The Swat valley received snowfall coupled with cold winds. Due to low temperature the supply of Sui gas was also affected, which caused serious problems for the residents of the area.

The hilltops near Kalam, Behrain, Madyan and Malam Jabba were covered with a blanket of snow.