Stranded in the snow: Shepherd rescued from mountainous area in Malatya loses his life

There were people stranded in Malatya's Hekimhan district due to heavy snowfall and blizzards.

Malatya Governor Seddar Yavuz reported that 2 shepherds and 1 herd owner who were stranded on the mountain were rescued following an intensive 4-hour operation.

Governor Yavuz stated that the heavy snowfall, which began in the afternoon, continues to affect the city.

ONE OF THE 5 SHEPHERDS LOST HIS LIFE IN THE HOSPITAL

Explaining that efforts were underway to rescue those stranded on the roads due to the heavy snowfall in the city, Yavuz said, "We are monitoring the operations at the Provincial AFAD Directorate Disaster Coordination Center. Currently, there are no citizens left stranded across the city. Our priority is to ensure no one remains stranded. Unfortunately, one of the 5 shepherds who was stranded on the mountain in Hekimhan district and whom we rescued as a result of our efforts has lost his life at the hospital where he was taken. Our sorrow is deep; I hope we do not receive any more sad news from now on."

787 PEOPLE STRANDED ON THE ROAD WERE RESCUED AND PLACED IN GUEST HOUSES"

In a statement made by the Governor's Office, it was noted that due to the heavy snowfall affecting the city, state roads in the Malatya-Kayseri and Malatya-Sivas directions were closed to traffic, and the safe evacuation of citizens stranded on the road due to adverse weather conditions is ongoing.

The statement reported that 127 people in 38 vehicles stranded on the Hekimhan-Sivas highway, 100 people in 42 vehicles stranded on the Darende-Gürün road, 60 people in 20 vehicles stranded in the Darende-Çayirdüzü area, and 75 people in 25 vehicles stranded on the Arapgir highway were rescued and transferred to the district centers.

Sharing the information that 787 citizens who were stranded on the road and rescued were placed in public guest houses in the district centers, the statement recorded the following:

"Five of our citizens working as shepherds in our province's Hekimhan and Darende districts were stranded on the mountain; our rescue teams rescued our 5 citizens as a result of a difficult struggle in the field, and 1 of our citizens could not be saved and lost his life at the hospital to which he was transferred. I would like to thank our Metropolitan Municipality, our Regional Directorate of Highways, and the Red Crescent, who put in intensive effort during these operations. It is of great importance that our citizens are careful against the risk of heavy snowfall and icing, do not set out unless necessary, and absolutely equip their vehicles with winter tires before hitting the road."

On the other hand, Metropolitan Mayor Sami Er stated that all teams are mobilized in coordination with relevant institutions and organizations for citizens stranded in some neighborhoods in the Darende, Hekimhan, Arapgir, and Akçadağ districts, noting that the work would be completed in a short time to reach the citizens.

News Source: AA