Srinagar, 14 Jan: Department of Disaster Management, Kashmir, has warned that walking on the superficial ice of water bodies, especially, Dal Lake could be life threatening.
In a statement issued here, the department said, “The minimum temperature recorded in Srinagar has gone below freezing point and touched -8.4°C, today. It was recorded as the coldest night of this winter, since the past 25 years. Earlier, in 1995 the minimum temperature in Srinagar had reached -8.3°C. Due to freezing temperatures many water bodies in the Valley, including the world famous Dal Lake have frozen. It has been observed that some people, particularly youth and children attempt to walk on the frozen water bodies.”
Aamir Ali, Nodal Officer State Emergency Operation Centre, Srinagar said that moving on this thin layer of ice, particularly Dal Lake is very risky and can result in slips, falls, fractures and fatal injuries. He said that when the thickness of ice is less than 4 inches, it is very unsafe to walk, or play and the ice can break resulting in drowning. He said that there are many springs inside Dal Lake and the ice is very thin at these spots and it’s difficult to spot these locations while walking or playing on the ice surface.
Informing that Shahid Iqbal Choudhary, District Magistrate/Chairman District Disaster Management Authority, Srinagar has issued an advisory to dissuade people from walking, playing or moving on frozen Dal Lake, as its unsafe, dangerous & potentially life threatening and that action will be initiated against anyone trying to violate these instructions. Quick Response Teams (QRTs) of J&K SDRF and River Police have been deployed in Dal Lake, as a precautionary measure