Thousands of stranded tourists in Murree evacuated by Islamabad police
- By Web Desk -
- Jan 09, 2022
ISLAMABAD: Inspector General (IG) Islamabad Muhammad Ahsan Younas has inspected the progress of the ongoing evacuation operation for stranded citizens in Murree and is present with the police teams on the front line, ARY News reported on Saturday.
The Islamabad police chief said that more than 1,500 police officers and officials are taking part in the evacuation operation that will be continued till the safe return of the last tourists from the calamity-hit area Murree.
اسلام آباد پولیس کا مری سے واپس آنے والے سیاحوں کے محفوظ انخلاء کا سلسلہ جاری۔
اب تک ہزاروں عورتوں، بچوں اور شہریوں کو محفوظ مقام تک پہنچایا جا چکا ہے۔
اسلام آباد پولیس کے 1500افسران و جوان خصوصی آپریشن میں حصہ لے رہے ہیں۔ آئی جی اسلام آباد تمام آپریشن کو خود مانیٹر کررہے ہیں۔ pic.twitter.com/GolfPAhnPm
— Islamabad Police (@ICT_Police) January 8, 2022
Muhammad Ahsan Younas said that police vehicles were transporting stranded tourists to safe locations and all resources are being utilised to assist the citizens.
READ: ‘MURREE EXPRESS HIGHWAY CLEARED, EVACUATION OF TOURISTS UNDERWAY’
Hundreds of tourists have been transported to safe localities so far by the Islamabad police and continued the evacuation operation at full pace, added the IG Islamabad.
اسلام آباد پولیس کا مری سے واپس آنے والے سیاحوں کے محفوظ انخلاء کا سلسلہ جاری۔
اب تک ہزاروں عورتوں، بچوں اور شہریوں کو محفوظ مقام تک پہنچایا جا چکا ہے۔ اسلام آباد پولیس اپنے تمام تر وسائل کو بروئے کار لاتے ہوئے شہریوں کی مدد کیلئے کوشاں ہے۔#IslamabadPolice #Murree pic.twitter.com/vALCQxMxmH
— Islamabad Police (@ICT_Police) January 8, 2022
The official Twitter account of the Islamabad Police shared videos and photos of the ongoing evacuation operations in which many senior officers are seen helping the tourists.
READ: KAGHAN VALLEY CLOSED FOR TOURISTS AFTER MURREE TRAGEDY
A set of photos showed that Islamabad police and Pakistan Army purchased a large number of jumpers for charging the batteries of vehicles in the calamity-hit areas.
بند گاڑیوں کو سٹارٹ کرنے کیلئے پاک فوج اور اسلام آباد پولیس کے جوانوں نے مشترکہ طور پر جمپرز خرید کر راولپنڈی پولیس کے حوالے کئے۔یہ جمپرز مری میں جاری ریسکیو آپریشن میں مددگار ثابت ہوں گے۔#IslamabadPolice #Murree pic.twitter.com/bSWD8yzeiK
— Islamabad Police (@ICT_Police) January 8, 2022
The jumpers have been handed over to Rawalpindi police for being used in the rescue operation in Murree.
Islamabad police continues operation to evacuate stranded tourists. Women, children and senior citizens are the first priority.#Murree pic.twitter.com/lFqYI8CjJN
— Islamabad Police (@ICT_Police) January 8, 2022
Murree tragedy
At least 22 tourists who were stranded in their vehicles due to heavy snowfall died of the extreme weather in Murree on Friday night.
The death toll has soared to 22 while a rescue and evacuation operation is underway in the hilly area. The deceased tourists hailed from Karachi, Lahore, Mardan and other cities.
According to a report on the Murree tragedy presented to Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar by the Rawalpindi administration, more than 100,000 vehicles entered Murree over the past three days. 12,000 of them exited the hill station while the rest got stuck.
The report put the death toll at 20 and said the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) had not alerted the district administration about the unprecedented snowfall that the hilly area was to receive.
Murree received five feet of snowfall, it said, adding the roads leading to the hill station were closed on the night of Jan 6 with people advised to avoid travelling to the area yet tourists in the large number reached there.