Afghanistan braces for severe weather

A winter storm brings deep snow and heavy rain to parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Afghanistan Snow
Heavy snow is forecast to bring treacherous conditions to Afghanistan and Pakistan over the next few days [EPA].

A weather system is currently sweeping across parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan which promises to bring severe weather to the region for the next few days.

The heavy rain and snow has already started to fall in many parts of Afghanistan and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan.

The rain will turn increasingly wintry during the remainder of Tuesday and on Wednesday.

The heaviest of the snow is expected over the Hindu Kush, the vast mountain range that stretches across Central Afghanistan and into Pakistan. Up to 1.5 metres of snow is forecast by the time the storm clears away on Thursday.

This is the wettest time of year in eastern Afghanistan, when the cold air from Asia is fighting with the warmer air from the south. This often triggers violent thunderstorms; another weather system brought heavy snow to the region earlier in the month.

The competing weather systems can also generate wildly fluctuating weather; on Tuesday night, Kabul is expecting snow and a minimum temperature of -2C, but by Saturday, the temperature should climb to a warming 16C.

Heavy rain and snow cause major problems across the region almost every year. The rural housing offers little protection against the torrential rain, and have been known to collapse on their occupants.

More intense weather systems are expected across the region over the next few months. The rainy season finally draws to a close at end of April, when the weather turns hot and dry.

Source: Al Jazeera