DUSHANBE, February 11, 2011, Asia-Plus — Bad weather continued to hamper traffic along the highway from Dushanbe to Khujand.
Vladimir Bogumanov, an official with the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MoTC), told Asia-Plus today that a stretch of the Dushanbe-Khujand highway in the Maikhoura area, some 74 kilometers north of Dushanbe, was cleared of snow yesterday evening and traffic resumed but for a short while, because four more snow-slides occurred in the area yesterday night.
According to him, storms dumped up to 70 centimeters of snow that impedes the snow removal operation in the area. “It is impossible to work in such conditions,” Bogumanov said, noting that four more snow plows were sent to the site.
In the meantime, the Committee for Emergency Situations (CES) reports that 35 avalanche-trapped vehicles “were released form a snow captivity yesterday evening.”
We will recall that a series of avalanches have poured down on the stretch the Dushanbe-Khujand highway in the Maikhoura area over the past two days. The CES spokesman Dustmurod Zabirov told Asia-Plus Thursday afternoon that 35 vehicles, mostly trucks, got trapped in the avalanches. “No injured has been reported,” said Zabirov, “The avalanche trapped drivers and their passengers have been placed in special galleries and provided with all necessary things.” Women and children have already been evacuated from the avalanche site.
The avalanches occurred after several days of heavy snowfall. Warmer temperatures have increased the risk of further avalanches, and therefore, people are advised to avoid unnecessary travels within the next few days, Zabirov said.
