A highway connecting Dushanbe and the northern Sughd province has partially reopened for traffic.
“Currently, traffic has been restored from Dushanbe to Khujand and the work on clearing the highway of snow is under way,” says the press center of the Branch of Innovative Road Solutions (IRS) in Tajikistan, which operates the toll on the Dushanbe-Chanak highway.
The press center also noted that about 60 avalanches have come down along this highway over the past three days.
As it was reported earlier, the Dushanbe-Khujand-Chanak highway was closed for traffic on February 1-2 as the risk of further avalanches in Varzob district was high.
Heavy snowfalls on February 1 caused three avalanches in Maikhoura and Hushyori areas of Varzob district blocking the highway on the 65th and 66th kilometers.
The Emergencies Committee said on February 1 that dozens of avalanches have occurred in Tajikistan since January 1 this year.
The risk of further avalanches reportedly remains high on some sections of Dushanbe-Varzob-Agni-Khujand highway (Sighed province), Dushanbe-Sango and Dushanbe-Lakhs highways (Rasht Valley in eastern Tajikistan), Vans-Khorog, Khorog-Ishkashim and Khorog-Murgab highways in the Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO).
To ensure the safety of drivers on the winter road and provide emergency assistance, rapid rescue trams of the Emergencies Committee regularly patrol different sections of roads in mountain areas.
While most roads are open, the Emergencies Committee advices people not to travel to mountain areas unnecessarily.
