PESHAWAR: A teenage boy was killed when a makeshift shelter collapsed on him due to downpour and snowfall in Upper South Waziristan on Tuesday night.

The 15-year-old was part of a nomadic family that has been living in a tent-like structure in the mountainous Ows Pass area of Tiarza tehsil for a long period, said residents.

They said the continuous rain coupled with snowfall weakened the structure, causing it to collapse.

The residents said the boy breathed his last after remaining buried under the debris.

The district administration confirmed the incident and said the boy was laid to rest in the area.

Local elders, community members and notables attended the funeral prayers and expressed solidarity with the family.

Also in the day, parts of Hazara and Malakand Division received rain and snowfall for the third consecutive day.

The high-altitude parts of Hazara Division recorded heavy snowfall, while the plains were lashed by downpour, bringing the mercury down to below zero degrees Celsius.

“This is the third spell of heavy snowfall in the Kaghan Valley. We sprinkled salt and deployed machinery to clear the artery connecting the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad Road with the tourist resort of Shogran,” assistant director of the Kaghan Development Authority Asad Shahzad told reporters.

The snowfall, which began in the early hours of the day, hit the high-altitude areas of Kaghan, Siren and Konsh valleys, the tourist resort of Shogran in Mansehra, the Spat and Kandia valleys of Upper Kohistan, and other upper parts of Hazara and continued intermittently throughout the day.

“Our machines have cleared the artery linking the MNJ Road with Shogran and removed slipperiness by sprinkling salt,” Mr Shahzad said.

He said that the MNJ Road, which had remained blocked since the first snowfall in November last year, suspending traffic between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan, was open to traffic up to Kaghan town.

“Tourists travelling to Shogran from the MNJ Road in the Kawai area should exercise caution and use chained four-wheel-drive vehicles only,” he said.

The official said that KDA workers had been deployed at key points to ensure smooth traffic flow and guide tourists travelling to Shogran and Kaghan town.

Meanwhile, heavy rainfall was reported in Mansehra, Torghar, Upper and Lower Kohistan and Kolai-Palas districts.

The rain and snowfall brought the mercury down to minus 11 degrees Celsius in the high-altitude areas, including the Kaghan Valley.

Abbottabad’s Thandiani, Ayubia and other Galiyat areas received its first snowfall. Upper hilly areas of Thandiani, Ayubia, Changla Gali, Donga Gali and Nathiagali recorded six inches to one feet snowfall with a large number of tourists managing to reach Nathiagali and Changla Gali.

Temperature in Abbottabad dropped below freezing point due to snowfall and rain with frequent intervals with cold and breezy winds.

Abbottabad-Muree Road was cleared by the GDA, district administration and Rescue 1122.

Meanwhile, hilltops in Lower Dir, including Shahi and Bin Shahi mountains, received over one foot of snowfall during the last two days. The local administration deployed heavy machinery to keep the Shahi-Barawal road open, with snow being cleared intermittently to ensure smooth traffic flow.

According to official sources, 10-15 inches of snowfall was recorded in Kumrat, Jaz Banda, Binshipahi and other upper areas of Kohistan, where traffic was temporarily suspended due to slippery road conditions.

Health officials also warned people about the impact of the cold spell.

Medical Superintendent Dr Jehanzeb said cases of chest and throat infections had increased due to the sudden change in weather, urging people to keep infants and young children properly warm.

Residents said the precipitation had brought the temperature down significantly, while farmers welcomed the rainfall and snowfall, hoping it would help replenish water sources and benefit seasonal crops.

A spokesperson for the Peshawar Electric Supply Company said its teams had restored power supply on 147 rain-hit feeders.

He said that the rain that fell for more than 24 hour tripped power feeders in Swat, Khyber, Peshawar Swabi and Mardan circles, causing power outages.

The spokesman, however, said electricity on all those feeders had been restored.

Published in Dawn, January 2nd, 2026