Tag: cold weather

  • Cold snap kills least 160 people in Afghanistan

    Cold snap kills least 160 people in Afghanistan

    Afghan authorities have reported on Thursday that more than 160 people have died this month from the cold, as the country goes through the most severe winter season in more than a decade.

    Villagers in the country have spoken of their inability to pay for fuel to heat their houses in well-below-freezing conditions.

    “162 people have died due to cold weather since January 10 until now,” said Shafiullah Rahimi, a spokesperson for the Minister of Disaster Management.

    Temperatures have dipped to as low as -34 degrees Celsius (-29.2 degrees Fahrenheit).

    Even in the early days of winter, medical specialists noticed a significant increase in the number of young children suffering from severe pneumonia and other respiratory ailments. The ailments are partially attributable to rising poverty, which hinders individuals from appropriately heating their houses.

  • 78 people die in Afghanistan after temperature drops to -34 degrees

    According to a Taliban official, at least 78 individuals have died in Afghanistan’s frigid temperatures during the past nine days.

    According to Shafiullah Rahimi, a spokesperson for the Taliban’s Ministry of Disaster Management, over 77,000 animals have also perished in recent days after temperatures fell to record lows.

    The frigid weather has turned into the country’s coldest winter in 15 years, with temperatures dipping as low as -34 degrees Celsius (-29.2 degrees Fahrenheit), Reuters has reported.

    “The weather will get colder in the next few days, therefore it is necessary to consider humanitarian aid for affected people,” said Abdullah Ahmadi, the head of the operations centre for emergency conditions at the Ministry of Disaster Management has said.

    Health professionals noted a substantial rise in the number of small children with severe pneumonia and other respiratory illnesses even in the early days of winter. Rising poverty that prevents people from adequately heating their homes is partly to blame for the illnesses.