The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has prepared the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Winter Contingency Plan calling for the establishment of air quality monitoring stations in major cities of the province.
According to the PDMA, the initiative is meant to assess preparedness at provincial and district levels to handle emergency situations.
A report carrying details of the contingency plan has declared snowfall, low temperature, fog and smog, landslides and heavy rainfalls as major winter hazards in the province.
According to it, Peshawar, Charsadda, Mardan, Nowshera, Swabi, Lakki Marwat and Dera Ismail Khan districts face the smog issue in the winter season.
PDMA declares snowfall, downpours, landslides, smog, low temperature major winter challenges
“Smog is one of the severe health hazards. It can be fatal for human health, especially children’s,” it said.
The PDMA said the establishment of air quality monitoring stations by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in major cities of the province was crucial to address the issue.
It added that the relevant data should be made available to all government departments and people for adopting mitigation measures.
The authority also called for the conversion of all brick kilns to zigzag technology by the EPA to address the smog issue.
The report placed Upper Chitral, Kohistan, Upper Dir, Shangla, Mansehra, Swat and Lower Chitral in the category of high-risk districts regarding snowfall, landslides, avalanches, and extreme cold.
It declared Lower Kohistan, Torghar, Kolai-Palas, Charsadda, Peshawar, Mardan, Swabi, North and South Waziristan high-risk districts due to their vulnerability to the winter weather hazards, while 10 other districts have the medium risk and nine low risk for winter hazards.
The figures of damages caused by the winter hazards during the last three years showed that 115 people were killed in the weather-related incidents and 199 suffered injuries. Also, 960 houses were completely and partially damaged in such incidents.
The report said for timely and effective response at all levels, early warning was the key component for preparedness, which helped mitigates the damages and loss of lives and property from a disaster.
“In case of emergency, the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre at the PDMA will issue early warning,” it said.
According to the report, there is a close liaison between the PEOC and district emergency operation centre. Also, early warning is disseminated both horizontally and vertically to the relevant departments for coordinated response in case of any disaster.
The PDMA said it had placed sufficient funds at the disposal of all deputy commissioners all over the province and that officials had been mandated to utilise those funds to rectify any deficiency in preparedness measures for contingency planning and provide immediate relief to affected population.
When contacted, PDMA director-general Sharif Hussain said the winter contingency plan was developed in consultations with district administrations, provincial departments and humanitarian partners.
He said through contingency planning, the authority makes efforts to minimise the losses likely to be caused by the winter hazards and consequent disasters.
“We [PDMA] have initiated the process of introducing proactive preparedness regime under guidelines established by National Disaster Management Authority for disaster risk reduction and streamlining response at provincial and district levels in coordination with all stakeholders,” he told Dawn.
He said based on vulnerabilities and associated risks, the districts had been categorised in to very high, high, medium and low categories.
