Disasters & Accidents

Snowstorm in east Afghanistan kills 10, five trapped under snow

Kabul, Feb 7 (EFE).- At least 10 people have died, and five remained trapped under piles of snow after avalanches hit the eastern Kunar province of Afghanistan, officials said Monday.

The disaster took place Sunday night in the Dangam district bordering Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of Pakistan.

Disaster management ministry spokesperson Mohammad Nasim Haqqani said 15 people got trapped under snow avalanches at different places of Dangam.

“Ten bodies have been recovered and search for five other persons is going on,” Haqqani told EFE.

Afghanistan is battling one of the harshest winters this year amid a crippling economic blockade enforced by the international community after the Taliban seized power in Kabul on Aug.15 last year.

Heavier-than-usual snowfall has blocked many strategic highways in different parts of the war-torn country.

Disaster management data shows that at least 38 people have died in earthquakes and floods since Jan.3 in more than ten provinces.

On Jan.18, an earthquake shook western Afghanistan, killing more than 22 people and destroying 800 houses in the Badghis province.EFE

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