MANSEHRA: Two women were killed after being struck by lightning and five persons sustained critical injuries during thunderstorm as the first spell of monsoon rains continued to batter Kohistan and Kolai-Palas districts on Wednesday.

Police rescued three stranded foreign tourists, a German national and two South Koreans, and shifted them to a safer place.

“Two women were killed and five other people received serious injuries in lightning strikes. All roads have been blocked due to landslide, badly affecting routine life. However, we are making efforts to reopen roads to traffic,” Aftab Shafiullah Jan, the district police officer of Kolai-Palas, told journalists on Wednesday.

Sporadic rains continued to lash Lower Kohistan and Kolai-Palas districts on third consecutive day. Hundreds of passengers, tourists and motorists remained stranded for the third consecutive day owing to blockade of Karakoram Highway at three points in Lower Kohistan.

Three stranded foreign tourists rescued; roads blocked due to landslide

The wife of Habibur Rehman was killed, and five other members of his family, including four women, sustained critical injuries when lightning struck their house in Sharakot area of Kolai-Palas district.

In another incident in Mela Kandogih Bandi area of the same district, a young girl, identified as the daughter of Niaz Khan, was killed by lightning. “We have launched rescue and relief operation in the villages hit by lightning and thunderstorm amid heavy rains,” said the DPO.

Lower Kohistan police, along with district administration and Rescue 1122, continued operations to clear KKH blocked by mudslide and flood that brought boulders onto the highway connecting Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with Gilgit-Baltistan.

“We rescued a South Korean couple and a German national, who were stranded owing to blockade of KKH while travelling from Sakardu to Islamabad and shifted them to Jijal police post to ensure their safety,” Zafar Ahmad Khan, the district police officer of Lower Kohistan, told journalists.

He said that the tourists were provided with meals and refreshments and would be escorted to the federal capital once KKH was reopened to traffic.

“We are also providing food, boarding and lodging facilities to hundreds of tourists stranded in our district due to continuous blockade of KKH,” he added.

The official said that the blocked sections of KKH from Khader Nullah to Gulozbanda were being cleared. It was expected that the highway would be cleared within the next eight to 10 hours, he said.

He said that passengers, tourists and motorists were not being allowed to proceed beyond Chakai police post. “Passengers, tourists and motorists from other parts of the country planning to travel between KP and GB via KKH should not proceed until the Lower Kohistan administration issues a travel advisory,” he said.

Published in Dawn, May 14th, 2026