At least 21 people have died in northern Pakistan, including 10 children, authorities said Saturday. Police said at least six had frozen to death in their cars. Asphyxiation after inhaling fumes in the snowdrift has been given as a possible reason for the others.
Soldiers rescued people from at least 24,000 vehicles stranded by heavy snow near the hill station town of Murree.
Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid said the crisis had been caused by the number of people travelling to the area, north of the capital Islamabad. More than 100,000 cars had arrived in the colonial-era town in recent days, with social media in Pakistan flooded with pictures of people enjoying the snow.
Video shared on social media showed cars packed bumper-to-bumper, with one-meter-high (three-foot) piles of snow on their roofs.
"People are facing a terrible situation," said Usman Abbasi, a tourist stuck in the town where heavy snow was still falling.
The Punjab Province chief minister’s office said Murree had been declared a "disaster area" and urged people to stay away.
Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed shock over the “tragic deaths” of the tourists, noting how the snowfall and the “rush of [people] proceeding without checking weather conditions caught district admin unprepared”.
“Have ordered inquiry and putting in place strong regulations to ensure prevention of such tragedies,” Mr Khan said in a tweet.
Authorities warned last weekend that too many vehicles were trying to enter Murree, but that failed to discourage hordes of day trippers from the capital.
The town of around 30,000 clings to the side of steep hills and valleys and is serviced by narrow roads that are frequently clogged even in good weather.
Sheikh Rashid said residents had sheltered people trapped in the town and provided blankets and food to those they could reach on the outskirts.
Authorities said schools and government buildings had taken in those who could make it to the town from the clogged roads.
Helicopters were also on standby for when the weather cleared.
Rescue 1122, Pakistan's emergency service, released a list naming 21 people including a policeman, his wife and their six children had been confirmed dead.