Dense fog, low visibility suspends flight operations at Srinagar International Airport
Shadow Correspondent
Srinagar, Jan 5 :
Most parts of Kashmir, including popular tourist destinations such as Gulmarg and Sonamarg, experienced another fresh spell of snowfall on Sunday, officials said.
Meanwhile, Srinagar and other low-lying areas received rain.
The Meteorological Department in Srinagar has forecast widespread light to moderate rain and snow across Jammu and Kashmir over the next 24 hours.
Reports indicate snowfall at the famous ski resort of Gulmarg, the scenic Sonamarg, and other regions including Kupwara, Baramulla, Tangmarg, Shopian, Kulgam, and the Pir Panjal mountain range. Snowfall was ongoing at many locations, according to local reports.
At Gulmarg and Sonamarg the tourists and locals rejoiced with the fresh snowfall. The skiers at Gulmarg were enjoying skiing on the slopes with great enthusiasm. The snow clearance operation was also launched at Gulmarg roads to avoid any traffic jam.
In Srinagar and other parts of the valley, intense cold, dense fog, and low visibility have disrupted normal life. Light rainfall was reported in Srinagar and other plains of the valley since afternoon, with rain continuing at several locations.
In view of the weather forecast, Police in Budgam and Ganderbal have issued advisories for the general public and tourists while traveling to Doodhpathri Yousmarg and Sonamarg resorts stating to take extra precautions during their proposed travel.
The minimum temperature recorded during the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday remained below freezing point all across the Kashmir valley with bone-chilling cold while the day temperature recorded on Saturday was also 3°C to 8°C below normal except Gulmarg where it was recorded 4.7°C above normal.
Srinagar had a low of -2.5°C on Sunday and this was 0.1°C below the average for the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir for the day.
The Picnic spot of Kokernag was the coldest place with -8.1°C in south Kashmir, Pahalgam-3.2°C, and Gulmarg -4.0 °C on Sunday, the MeT office said.
Amid poor visibility and foggy weather conditions, all flights to and from Srinagar International Airport were suspended on Sunday, officials said.
“All flights at the Srinagar International Airport have been cancelled for the day due to adverse weather conditions,” Director of Srinagar International Airport Javed Anjum told UNI.
The flight operations at the Srinagar International Airport were affected on Sunday due to poor visibility caused by dense fog, they said.
Early in the morning, the visibility at the Srinagar airport was 50 meters, which has affected the air traffic and forced the authorities to delay the flight operations. Ten flights were cancelled during the morning due to the low visibility at the airport.
However, there was no improvement in the visibility which led the airport authorities to suspend all to-and-fro flights for the day.
Meanwhile, the Meteorological Department Srinagar forecast light to moderate rain and snowfall at most places in J&K during the next 24 hours.
