PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the adjacent tribal areas received the second spell of rain and snowfall of the current season on Wednesday.

The snowfall caused closure of Lowari Pass, which connects Chitral to other parts of the country, to traffic while plain areas including Peshawar valley and Dera Ismail Khan division received widespread rain.

The Met office forecast that the downpour would continue for the next 24 hours. The provincial metropolis received more than 5mm rain while maximum temperature remained 13 degree centigrade.

The rain forced the people in plain areas of the province to stay indoors. In the hilly areas of the province, temperature dipped below the freezing point due to the snowfall which badly affected daily routine of life.

The Met office said that Bannu received the heaviest rain in the province. It said that Bannu received 17mm rain while Malam Jabba, a skiing resort in Swat district, received moderate snow.

Galyat in Abbottabad district also received snow and rain, which added chill to the cold. Parachinar in Kurram Agency also received snow, while the low altitude areas received heavy rain.

Persistent prolonged dry weather had led to host of chest and throat infections in the region. Doctors said that the rain would provide relief to people from the ailments caused by polluted and dusty environment.

However, they said that children, particularly infants, should be protected from the cold so that they couldn’t develop the problems which could snowball into major illnesses.

The upper parts of Hazara on Wednesday received the downpour causing mercury to dip further.

The rain, which was started in Mansehra, Battagram, Torghar and Kohistan districts in the morning, continued intermittently the entire day. The mercury was dropped to 10 Celsius following rain in the region.

The mountainous areas including Kaghan valley, Allai valley and Kandia valley in the division received snowfall.

In Swat, the weather turned colder after heavy rain lashed lower parts of the district and hilly areas received snowfall on Wednesday.

The plain areas of the district received widespread rain while hilly areas including Kalam valley, Miandam, Bahrain, Malam Jabba and Marghazar received snowfall.

In Buner, the famous mountains including Elum Ghar, Dwasaroo and Speen Sar received the first snowfall and rain of the season on Wednesday that ended the prolonged dry spell in the region.

The local residents said that the snowfall on the mountains started early in the morning and continued with intervals throughout the day. They said that the snowfall brought down the mercury level. They said that the plain areas of the district also received light rain during the day.

Published in Dawn January 22nd , 2015

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