MANSEHRA: Four tourists were rescued early on Thursday after remaining stranded in the mountainous Mundi Top area of Siren Valley due to strong winds and a hailstorm.

`Our team rescued all four stranded tourists, including a slightly injured one, after receiving an emergency call, and shifted them here,` Rescue 1122 official Amir Khadam told reporters.

The tourists, identified as Raja Uzair, Mohammad Talah, Mohammad Saad Asif and ZarabKhan, all from Wah Cantt, had set out on an adventurous trip from the Mundi area of Siren Valley to Doga Top on foot. `The hailstones and windstorms that hit the valley on Wednesday evening wreaked havoc, uprooting trees and damaging slum and wooden houses.

The visitors were left stranded in the high mountains,` Mr Khadam said.

The official said the rescue team, equipped with all necessary gear, trav-elled by vehicle as far as possible and then procee de d on foot for many hours to reach the stranded tourists.

`We provided them [tourists] with emergency treatment, and the one who sustained injuries was shifted to a nearby health facility,` he said.

Mr Khadam said the entire rescue operation was carried out in the dark of night, after which the rescued visitors were brought here and later transported back to Wah Cantt in the morning.

`The rescued tourists lauded the sincere efforts and professionalism of the rescue team members,` he said.

Meanwhile, Mansehra police claimed to have seized a huge cache of narcotics being smuggled from Peshawar to here.

A statement issued here said a police team raided a house in Mungan Machipol area and seized over 10kg of charas and 660 grams of heroin, arresting narcotics peddlers. Correspondent