“The discharge of water has exceeded the inflow, as a result of which the width and depth of the spillway is expanding with each passing moment,” a government official said. Conflicting reports came about the total discharge of water from the 23-kilometer long lake, with local administration official putting it 4,220 cusecs, according to Nespak, an engineering consultancy, it stands at 4,850 cusecs and other sources describing it over 5,000 cusecs.
If the discharge of water from the lake exceeds the inflow, the submerged villages will start resurfacing, said an official, adding that the amount of outflow is not so big at the moment.
He said that the administration is in control of the situation but the area is still put on high-alert as a precautionary measure.
“The IDPs are not allowed to return to their houses because the disaster is not yet over,” he said, adding that the administration was taking full care of the displaced people. Helicopters airlifted several stranded people and also dropped food items in various areas around the lake. Also the highway connecting Hunza and Gilgit remained open Sunday, indicating that there was no imminent threat of a major flood.
The government has said that it has installed early warning system near the spillway that will go off if a situation develops at some point.
“The situation of the lake and the spillway is also being monitored through cameras and helicopters,” an official said, adding that all the traffic on the Karakoram Highway will be halted if the situation turned out to be grave.
Published in the Express Tribune, June 7th, 2010.
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