Attabad in the making: Another village under threat

An official survey indicates a landslide may sweep away a large portion of the Kholtoro-Haramosh village.

GILGIT:

Recurring seismic phenomena and visible cracks in the ground points to an impending disaster in another village in Gilgit-Baltistan just like the one that hit Attabad village last year.

Local residents and officials agree that these signs are recurring with increasing intensity in Kholtoro-Haramosh village, a village off the road between Skardu and Gilgit.

The people of the village said that they had sent a letter to the government, detailing the risks. Stressing the need for urgent measures for the safety of villagers, the letter said that the village, which has a population of about 300 people, might be completely swept away by a landslide.

Early last year, a massive landslide swept away Attabad, a small village in Hunza, killing nearly 20 people. The landslide also blocked River Hunza, cutting off 25,000 people living in the upper reaches of the Hunza Valley.

A district government official said that after receiving the letter, the government had asked the Gilgit-Baltistan Disaster Management Authority to conduct a survey to assess the situation.

He said that the disaster management authority had conducted the survey with the help of a non-profit organisation and submitted its report to the government. The report also highlighted the fear that a landslide may sweep away the village’s main water channel, a school, several fields, trees and around 31 houses.

The report also said that the house of an adviser of the Gilgit-Baltistan government might also be swept away.

“Apart from safety measures, food needs be stocked in adequate quantities to meet any eventuality,” the report recommended.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 1^st, 2011.