PESHAWAR: With rain lashing large parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, heavy flooding from the downpour killed a man in Abbottabad district on Thursday.

Officials of the Rescue 1122 said two residents of Havelian tehsil, including Nisar and Farman, were taken away by floodwaters in Jhangra stream following torrential rains.

They added that workers of the emergency service rescued Nisar but Farman was found dead.

Heavy rainfall was reported in upper parts of Hazara division, including Mansehra, Kolai-Palas, Upper and Lower Kohistan and Torghar districts.

It began raining in the afternoon and continued sporadically until night.

The Kaghan Valley recorded heavy snowfall, which led to the blocking of the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad Road to traffic.

Snowfall blocks key road in Kaghan Valley

The snowfall began in the afternoon and continued for some hours.

The road’s closure stranded dozens of tourists at Babusar Top, Gattidas and adjoining areas.

An official of the Kaghan Development Authority told reporters that all stranded visitors had been shifted to the Naran area before they left for their respective areas in the country.

The Met Department said Kalamarea of Swat district received 17 millimeters of rain, Saidu Sharif nine millimeters, Malam Jabba eight, Chitral six, Charat, Mirkhani and Drosh five, Parachinar four, and Peshawar and Balakot three millimeters in the last 24 hours.

It forecast more rainfall along with wind and thunderstorm and snowfall over mountains in upper parts of the province.

Meanwhile, a house was gutted after a lightning strike in Danda Japeet village of Torghar district.

No loss of life was reported as the family, including women and children, fled to safety.

The lightning-caused fire ripped through the house damaging rooms and destroying household items.

“Though lightning damaged my house and adjoining cattle pen, my family and herd of cattle remained safe in the incident,” landlord Noor Khattab told reporters.

He said that the lightning strike was like doom and that his and his family members’ ears were deafened with thunder.

“Whatever was present in the house is destroyed. We couldn’t put out the fire even for hours,” he said.

Mr Khattab complained that no fire tender reached his house to put out the fire. “No road leads to our village, so fire engines can’t reach here,” he said.

The police reached the village only after the fire was extinguished.

Published in Dawn, November 10th, 2023