Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Monday night expressed his condolences to the families who lost relatives in recent avalanches and snowstorms and said his prayers were with them and all those affected by the bad weather.

He also called on victim’s families to be patient.

He said the heavy snowfalls recorded around the country were unprecedented and unexpected but that he hoped the year ahead would be a year filled with blessings and prosperity.

Ghani stated that in the past 50 days, more than 160 people had lost their lives in snowstorms and avalanches as well heavy rain.  

He said the heavy snowstorms had also incurred great losses to the people.

Officials have reported in the past few days that countless houses have been destroyed in the bad weather.

On Monday, senior government officials confirmed at least 119 people had died in the past few days in avalanches and snowstorms that gripped large parts of the country for about three days.

They also confirmed that in this time, over 80 people had been injured.

Authorities are still hard at work clearing snowed-in roads around the country but by Monday, many key highways, including Salang Pass, had been reopened to traffic.

Officials did however caution drivers to chain their tyres where necessary.

They also said people must take the necessary precautions to stay warm as temperatures in parts of the country were still way below freezing.

On Monday morning Abdullah Abdullah addressed the nation and said emergency aid was being delivered to people in affected areas.

According to him, 22 provinces had been affected.

He also said the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority (ANDMA) was working hard to address the people’s problems but called on the public to help authorities clear snowed in roads.

The UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Kabul also conveyed its sympathies to families of those affected in the avalanches and pledged the UN’s full support to the Afghan government in the relief and rescue operations.

The UN deputy special representative of the Secretary-General and Humanitarian Coordinator for Afghanistan Mark Bowden said that he was deeply saddened to learn about the loss of life and widespread damage to property , especially in Barg-e-Matal district of the eastern province of Nuristan.

“On behalf of the UN humanitarian agencies, I wish to extend our condolences to all those families who have lost loved ones as a result of this avalanche,” Bowden said.
“I commend the efforts of the Afghan government that has quickly mobilized to respond to the disaster,” he said.  

“At least 50 people were reported as killed, with a further 13 injured from an avalanche in Nuristan which occurred in the early hours of 5 February (Sunday). Further casualties from other avalanches and heavy snowfall were also reported in other areas around Afghanistan, including a reported 10 killed and 12 injured in Darwaz Bala, Badakhshan province,” the UN stated.

“The UN system stands ready to fully support the Afghan government in responding to the disaster,” said Bowden.