Heavy snowstorms have caused a series of avalanches in mountainous northeastern Afghanistan over a two-day period, killing scores of people.
Ninety people have been killed as a result of the avalanches in Panjshir province, provincial Gov. Abdul Rahman Kabiri said. The avalanches began Tuesday and continued Wednesday.
Fifteen other people have been injured, and about 100 homes have been destroyed, Kabiri said. He added that more people would lose their lives if the central government and nongovernmental organizations didn’t send emergency assistance quickly.
Panjshir is a small, mountainous province north of the capital, Kabul. Its residents are generally poor, earning their living as farmers, shepherds or operators of small businesses such as groceries.
Dozens of avalanches happened in many parts of the province, but the deaths were in three districts: Hesa Awal, Paryan and Dara.