On the direction of Chief Minister Punjab and IG Punjab, Rawalpindi District and Traffic Police in Murree are on high alert to assist tourists

On the direction of Chief Minister Punjab and IG Punjab, Rawalpindi District and Traffic Police in Murree are on high alert to assist tourists
Ninety percent of Murree's roads have been cleared, children and families have been taken out of vehicles and shifted at government guesthouses and safe places. Punjab Police Spokesperson
Citizens are being provided food, dried fruits, medicines, warm clothes and other essentials. Punjab Police Spokesperson
During the last 24 hours, more than 24,000 vehicles and hundreds of civilians were rescued on the highways of Murree. Punjab Police Spokesperson
Traffic wardens chained the tires of tourist vehicles stuck in the snow and pulled them out. Basic commodities and edibles are being provided to the families trapped in the vehicles. Punjab Police Spokesperson
Apart from District Police Rawalpindi, Traffic Police Rawalpindi, Chakwal and Attock police personnel are also participating in the rescue work. Punjab Police Spokesperson
Punjab Chief Minister and IG Punjab are in constant touch with the senior police officers and district administration in Murree. Punjab Police Spokesperson

On the direction of Chief Minister Punjab and Inspector General of Police Punjab Rao Sardar Ali Khan, Rawalpindi District and Traffic Police are on hand to assist tourists in Murree and RPO, CPO and CTO Rawalpindi are engaged in supervising rescue and relief operations. Spokesperson of Punjab Police said that 90% of the roads in Murree have been cleared, children and families have been removed from the vehicles and shifted at government guest houses and safe places. Citizens are being provided food, dried fruits, medicines, warm clothes and other essentials. Punjab Police Spokesperson further said that 157665 vehicles entered Murree from last Sunday till yesterday out of which 123920 vehicles got out of Murree since last evening.

There were 33745 vehicles in Murree till Saturday evening. According to the spokesperson of Punjab Police, 33373 vehicles have been rescued and evacuated during the last 24 hours, while in Murree, besides the vehicles of locals, empty tourist vehicles are stuck in the snow which are being evacuated. The express highway is completely clear, traffic on the old GT Road is slow. Snow removal on the road from Kaldana to Barian is in progress. Troops are stationed at the entrances to the 17-mile toll plaza, Phalgaran Toll Plaza and GT Road. All emergency services vehicles, including ambulances, are allowed to enter and exit Murree. Roads are being cleared by removing snow from the roads in collaboration with the district administration. The road is getting difficult due to falling trees and heavy snowfall. Apart from District Police Rawalpindi, Traffic Police Rawalpindi, Chakwal and Attock police personnel are also taking part in the rescue work while Chief Minister Punjab and IG Punjab are in constant touch with senior police officers in Murree and district administration.

The Punjab Police spokesperson further said that on the orders of Chief Minister Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar and Inspector General of Police Punjab Rao Sardar Ali Khan, relief activities of Rawalpindi Police and Traffic Police are in full swing to help the stranded tourists in Murree and Galyat. RPO Rawalpindi is personally supervising the rescue operations and CPO Rawalpindi is engaged in rescue and relief operations on the highways. Punjab Police Spokesperson said that more than 24,000 vehicles were rescued on the Murree highways in the last 24 hours. The continuous snowfall, falling trees on the road and slippery roads caused difficulties. Traffic wardens are pulling chains on the tires of tourist vehicles stuck in the snow, while tourists are being pulled out by snow bikes at places where snow freezes on the road. Punjab Police spokesperson further said that hundreds of traffic police and Rawalpindi police personnel are assisting the families stranded on the highways and police provided essential items such as warm clothes, food , dried fruits and biscuits to the families stranded in snow and vehicles. According to DSP Traffic, the main highways of Murree are clear and relief work of clearing snow on roads , evacuation of vehicles is underway in Galyat. On the direction of IG Punjab, supervisory officers and hundreds of personnel have been present in the field since last night and Rawalpindi police will continue rescue and relief work till the last vehicle of tourists stranded in the snow is removed.

In addition, IG Punjab Rao Sardar Ali Khan has directed the Rawalpindi district and traffic police to provide emergency assistance to tourists stranded in the heavy snowfall of Murree and Galyat. IG Punjab said that women, children and the elderly should be rushed to a safe place and delivery of blankets, warm clothes and food should be ensured. Rao Sardar Ali Khan said that immediate first aid should be given to the citizens suffering from respiratory and lung diseases due to continuous snowfall and running of heaters in vehicles. A large number of Rawalpindi police and traffic police including RPO Rawalpindi, CPO Rawalpindi and CTO Rawalpindi are present in Murree on the orders of CM Punjab and IGP.

IG Punjab said that Punjab Police, Punjab Highways should work with the concerned agencies on an emergency basis to remove the snow and ensure all possible steps in coordination with the district administration, rescue and health department. IG Punjab directed Punjab Highway Police to send heavy machinery and all resources to Murree on an emergency basis and asked the RPO Rawalpindi to coordinate with all concerned departments for removal of snowfall including monitoring of inbound and outbound routes of Murree.

(Handout No. 18)

Osama Mehmood
Director Public Relations
Punjab Police

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Press Release Date:

Saturday, January 8, 2022