MANSEHRA: The administration of Torghar district has finalised its winter contingency plan, placing all relevant departments on standby to effectively deal with any untoward situation.

“Our district has been experiencing one of the severest cold waves to grip Hazara division in decades. Educational institutions must be closed at all costs and all relevant departments should remain alert to cope with any emergency during the harsh weather,” Ali Sher, the additional deputy commissioner, said while chairing a meeting of heads and representatives of devolved departments in Judbah, the district headquarters.

The meeting discussed the forecast of heavy snowfall and rainfall in the coming days and weeks. It devised a comprehensive strategy to deal with potential emergency situation.

“Central and link roads connecting the district with Karakoram Highway and Hazara Motorway must remain open to traffic during and after snowfall and heavy downpour,” said Mr Sher.

He said that communication and works department and tehsil municipal administrations would position machinery in landslide-prone areas to ensure immediate clearance of roads following snowfall.

Mr Sher also directed that families living along the Indus River and local streams should be warned about possible flooding in tributaries during periods of heavy rainfall.

He instructed boat operators to adopt extra precautionary measures to ensure the safety of passengers during the winter season.

KILLED: A man was killed and 12 other people, including women and children, sustained critical injuries when a passenger wagon plunged into a ravine in Bhutti area of Oghi tehsil on Wednesday night.

The passenger wagon was on its way to Dara Shayana from Oghi when the driver, while negotiating a sharp turn, lost control of the vehicle. The wagon skidded off the road and plunged into a deep ravine.

Rescue 1122 personnel, along with locals, rushed to the scene and retrieved injured from the ravine before shifting them to tehsil headquarters hospital, Oghi, where doctors pronounced the driver, Khan Mohammad, dead.

Critically injured persons including Mohammad Mukhtar, Wali Mohammad, Mohammad Waseem, Mohammad Shahyan, Mohammad Zaman and Sher Bahadar were referred to King Abdullah Teaching Hospital, Mansehra.

Published in Dawn, January 11th, 2026