A cold snap in Afghanistan has killed over 160 people and more than 200,000 livestock in what officials say is its coldest winter in 15 years.
Temperatures in some parts of the country have plummeted to -33 degrees Celsius and heavy snowfalls have been recorded across the nation – which is grappling with a severe humanitarian crisis.
The country’s disaster management agency said on Saturday that the death toll had risen by 88 over the past week and now stood at 166, based on data from 24 of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces.
Ministry official Abdul Rahman Zahid said in a video statement that the deaths were caused by floods, fires and leaks from gas heaters, while about 100 homes have been destroyed.
“The Afghan winter … as everybody in Afghanistan knows, is the big messenger of doom for so many families in Afghanistan as we go through these many years of humanitarian need … we see some of the consequences in loss of life,” UN aid chief Martin Griffiths said.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said this week 17 people had died in a single village in northeastern Badakhshan province due to an outbreak of “acute respiratory infection.”
“Harsh weather prevents help from reaching the area,” the WHO said.