At least 14 people have died after heavy snowfall set off an avalanche in northwest Pakistan, Sunday, according to officials.
A mass of snow, ice and rocks plummeted upon five houses in the mountainous Sher Shal village in the district of Chitral.
The dead include six women, six children and two men, Colonel Nizamuddin Shah told CNN affiliate Geo News.
Sheena Ayub Khan, spokesperson for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province’s disaster management authority, told CNN that evacuation efforts are currently underway.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has announced that the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) will coordinate rescue efforts and arrange necessary medical assistance, food and shelter for those affected.
Chitral is in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province, of which Peshawar is the capital.
This is the latest natural disaster to hit the province since flash floods killed at least 47 people and left 37 others injured in April.
