Abbottabad police have rescued as many as 50 people, including 44 female students, who got stranded in snow, in the wee hours of Tuesday, near Changla Gali, some 45 km from here. Female students of a private college of Lahore, along with six male staff members, came to Nathiagali on picnic on Monday and the coaches they were travelling in got stuck near Changla Gali after heavy snowfall in the area.
District administration of Abbottabad arranged food for them in a local hotel. Police rescue team, headed by SSP Abbottabad, Syed Feroze Shah reached Changla Gali and supervised the snow-removing operation.
Due to very slippery and poor road conditions female students and their teachers were shifted to Murree at 3 am on four-wheel drive jeeps. Some of the students had asthma attack as they had breathing problems due to extreme cold weather and humidity.
Police officials of Dunga Gali told APP that snow was removed from the road at midnight but the drivers of the coaches carrying female students refused to drive them back to Murree out of fear. This prompted the police officials to carry all the students on four-wheel drive vehicles.