Murree was declared a disaster-hit on Saturday after at least 22 people died in cars stuck in snow amid an influx of tourists.
Television footage showed thousands of cars stranded on the roads leading to the hill station on Saturday evening, hours after Punjab Chief Minister issued directions to speed up rescue operations and provide assistance to stranded tourists.
In addition, according to the chief minister of the province, the entry of cars into the lanes of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was banned.
In the list released by Rescue 1122, it has been said that 22 people, including 10 children, have died. The dead included an assistant sub-inspector of Islamabad police and seven members of his family.
Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said in a video message that tourists had come to the hill station in such large numbers “for the first time in 15 to 20 years, which created a major crisis”.
He said the Rawalpindi and Islamabad administrations, along with the police, were working to rescue the stranded people, while five platoons of the Pakistan Army, as well as Rangers and Frontier Corps, were called on an emergency basis.
The minister said that around 1,000 cars are stuck at the hill station.
Ahmed said while the residents of Muri provided food and blankets to the stranded tourists, the administration had closed all routes to the hill station and now only allowed vehicles to collect food and blankets. Used to be.
“God willing, we will save 1,000 cars by this evening. We have decided to stop people [travelling] On foot too. it’s not time [pedestrian] Tourists to see.”
Pakistan Meteorological Department was Predicted Heavy snowfall in Muri and Galiyat from January 6 to 9.
Muri disaster declared hit
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar declared a disaster-hit and declared a state of emergency in hospitals, police stations, administration offices and 1122 rescue services.
He also directed the Provincial Chief Secretary, Inspector General of Police, Relief Commissioner, Director General Rescue 1122 and Director General of Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) to carry out rescue operations besides providing their helicopters to assist in the relief operations.
In a statement issued by his office, the chief minister said that rescuing the stranded tourists was “top priority”, adding that all rest houses and Rajya Bhavans were opened for them.
Buzdar said that the process of rescuing the tourists has been expedited and food and essential items are also being provided.
He also expressed grief over the death of people trapped in the snow and said that he is with the families in this grief.
The Chief Minister later shared this in a tweet, saying that he has issued orders to expedite the work and send more machinery to rescue civilians trapped in snow from Rawalpindi.
He said more than 23,000 cars had been evacuated from the area the night before and rescue operations were on. Buzdar appealed to the people to strictly follow the instructions given by the police and district administration and cooperate with them.
Pakistan Army personnel reached Muri to help in the rescue operation. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement that army engineers also reached the area to help open up the main highways.
The army’s media wing later said that its contingents of engineers had cleared the Muri Expressway.
“Heavy machinery from Muri, the Army’s Engineer Division and the FWO are working non-stop to assist the people,” the ISPR said. Clearing and opening the roads. ,
In the evening, the ISPR said that all the stranded people would be shifted to five relief camps set up by the army in Muri.
The ISPR statement said, “Food, shelter will be provided to those affected by heavy snowfall.” Army Relief Center has been established at Army School of Technician Barion, Military College Murri, Jhika Gali, APS Kuldana, Station Supply Depot Sunny Bank.
Meanwhile, some stranded tourists reported geo news The civil administration was nowhere to be seen, saying that the rescue and relief work was being carried out only by officials of the Pakistan Army. He lauded the army officers for reaching out to them, providing them with food items and cleaning the roads.
Complete ban on the entry of cars on the roads
KP Chief Minister Mahmood Khan said in a statement that he was closely monitoring the situation in Galiyat, which is crowded with tourists during the current winter season.
The entry of cars has been completely banned in Galiyat, he said, adding that there have been no untoward accidents in the area where three feet of snow had fallen the day before.
The Chief Minister said that the tourists trapped in the cars were rescued and sent to rest houses and hotels. “The Galiyat Development Authority, Rescue 1122 and the local administration have been put on high alert to deal with any untoward situation,” he said.
Khan also directed all the deputy commissioners to ensure that all homeless people in the province are taken to shelter homes amid snow and rain and no one sleeps in the open.
PM said – District administration was caught without preparation, orders for investigation
Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed grief and regret over the deaths in Muri, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Political Communications (SAPM), Shahbaz Gill shared on Twitter.
“All agencies have been mobilized. Army, 1122, Hazara Div (KP) and Pindi Div (Punjab) have been mobilized to open resources [and] Clear the blocked areas,” he said.
Later, the prime minister himself tweeted, acknowledging that the district administration was “caught unprepared” due to “unprecedented snowfall and hordes of people moving forward without checking weather conditions”.
,[I] Investigation and strict regulation have been ordered to ensure prevention of such tragedies.
‘Where was the government?’
Meanwhile, opposition political leaders criticized the government for its handling of the tourist influx and inadequate preparation.
Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly and PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif said he was saddened by the tragedy in Muri and questioned who was responsible for the deaths.
“Where was the government all the time? What arrangement did he make to deal with such influx? Disability is rapidly turning into a crime. Earlier arrangements and round the clock monitoring were the usual SOPs,” he tweeted.
Describing the deaths as heartbreaking, PPP vice-president Sherry Rahman said governments “need to be more vigilant about the influx of tourists on Galilee routes”.
“Instead of looking for more tourists, the government should have warned about jammed roads,” he said. These were tragic and avoidable losses that were not intended, but no one acted on in a timely manner. Lessons need to be learned.”
“The job of the governments is not only to count the tourists but also to make advance arrangements and security measures for them. […] These deaths have not happened because of snowfall but due to negligence of the government,” tweeted PML-N vice-president Maryam Nawaz.
Later, Federal Information and Broadcasting Minister Fawad Chaudhry responded to the criticism, saying, “It is unfortunate that the opposition is playing politics over the matter.”
Addressing a press conference along with Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood, he said, “The politics of the opposition, however, does not hold any importance.”
“Whatever they are, they will criticize,” the minister said. He said that the government is fully alert.
“it is us [standing] Our people are behind and the situation is improving. [Muree] The expressway is now open and more routes will be opened soon.
It is pertinent to mention that Chowdhary did it in the first week Cited Around 100,000 tourist vehicles arrive at the hill station as a sign of “prosperity and income for the common man”.
Hotel association attacks administration, offers free stay to stranded people
Hotel Association general secretary Raja Yasir Abbasi announced free accommodation and food for the tourists stranded in Muri.
talking to don news tvHe slammed the local administration for their “mismanagement”, saying that the death of a police officer and his family was entirely due to “departmental and administrative laziness”.
He also criticized the Home Minister’s notification to shut down Murree, saying it has spread fear and panic among the people.
The Secretary General also opposed declaring the area a “disaster hit”, saying such a tag was for sudden acts of God and not for situations where the Met Office had predicted bad weather “10 days ago”. . ,
Fawad appeals to tourists to avoid Murik
Earlier today, Chaudhary also appealed to the people not to go to the hill station.
“A great crowd [is headed towards] Muri and hilly areas. Hundreds of thousands of cars are traveling in these areas. It is impossible for the local administration to provide facilities to such a large number of people.
Choudhary urged those who were at home to delay their travel plans in those areas for some time.
there were a large number of people stranded Flights were delayed for the fourth consecutive day on Friday as rain continued to lash the federal capital and Rawalpindi.
Due to continuous snowfall and traffic jam in Muri, the district administration has banned the entry of more vehicles.
The snowfall that began on Tuesday night continued with regular intervals, attracting thousands of tourists. However, many families got stuck on the streets due to the rush of visitors. It has been told that more than one lakh vehicles entered the hill station.
Chief traffic officer Taimur Khan said in a statement that entry of vehicles has been banned in Muri from Friday night and cars are being diverted from toll plazas and other entrances.
He said that since the snowfall that started on Monday morning, more than 155,000 vehicles have entered Murree and 135,000 vehicles have left so far.