Heavy Snowfall in J&K Throws Life Out of Gear, Disrupts Flight and Train Operations

Srinagar airport officials informed that snow clearing operations are underway on the runway and on the apron following heavy snowfall.

Srinagar: The season’s first heavy fall in Jammu and Kashmir has thrown life of gear on Wednesday and disrupted flight and railway operations and also leading to the closure of the vital Srinagar-Jammu national highway. Most areas of the valley received moderate to heavy snowfall which started in the night and was going on when last reports came in, said officials. The areas in the higher reaches of the Union Territory received very heavy snowfall — around two feet or more, they said.

The bad weather affected the flight operations to and fro the Kashmir valley. The continuous snowfall has led to the delay in flights at Srinagar airport and reduced the visibility to 400m in the area. At least six flights at the Srinagar airport have been cancelled, and the rest have been delayed, the officials said.

Srinagar airport officials informed that snow clearing operations are underway on the runway and on the apron following heavy snowfall. “We are having continuous snowfall at our airport. Our snow clearing operations are in continuous progress on the runway and the apron. However, the visibility is only 400m,” the officials said. They added, “All flights of all airlines are delayed. We will continuously update the status of flights.”

#WATCH | Heavy snowfall blankets the Valley. Visuals from Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir. pic.twitter.com/nYVHj5NJqD

— ANI (@ANI) February 23, 2022

Train service between Baramulla and Banihal was suspended this morning due to the accumulation of snow on the railway tracks, the officials said. The 300-km Jammu-Srinagar highway was closed as besides snowfall, it received heavy rains resulting in shooting stones at a few places, they said. Traffic was barred on either side of the highway, the officials added.

The officials said Srinagar – the summer capital of the union territory – recorded about eight inches of snow till this morning. The authorities have pressed men and machinery into service to clear the snow off the roads, many of which, such as those leading to hospitals and other vital installations, are being cleared on priority, the officials said.

The Meteorological department has said that a gradual decrease in rain and snow is expected from Wednesday afternoon, and there would be a significant improvement in the weather evening onwards.

Overall improvement is most likely from Thursday onwards. After this spell, there is no forecast of any major rain/snow till the end of this month, the Met office said. The authorities have appealed to people to not move out of their homes unless absolutely necessary.

Snow clearance machines of MED (mechanical engineering department) and other departments are clearing the snow mechanically and manually from the main roads since early morning, but due to continuous snowfall, the roads are very slippery and there are chances of accidents, the authorities said in an advisory. In the wake of the snowfall, Kashmir University postponed all examinations for the day.