Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has invited three men from Gilgit-Baltistan, hailed as heroes for saving hundreds of lives from a potential Glacial Lake Outburst Flood, to Islamabad to honour them with a special award, Radio Pakistan reported on Sunday.
On the Prime Minister’s directive, Wasit Khan, Ansar and Muhammad Khan have been called to the capital in recognition of their efforts to warn local communities and help avert disaster.
Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has invited three heroes from Gilgit Baltistan (GB) who had saved about 300 human lives by providing timely information about the impacts of glacial burst or glacial lake outburst flood (glof) in Ghizer district.
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Declaring the trio as national heroes, Shehbaz said they had “set a remarkable example of duty and responsibility.” He added, “I, along with the entire nation, am proud of these heroes from Gilgit-Baltistan.”
A local shepherd's timely warning proved a lifeline for the entire population of Roshan village in Ghizer district, sparing them from a devastating flash flood early Friday morning, as the state's vaunted flood alerts once more rang hollow, proving little more than dead weight.
The incident has reignited debate over the wisdom of indigenous knowledge in the unforgiving terrain of G-B, where nature often calls the shots.
Officials confirmed that Roshan, located some 200 kilometres from Gilgit, was completely submerged. Although no lives were lost, residents lost all their household belongings and livestock.
According to villagers and local authorities, tragedy was averted solely because of the shepherd's presence of mind. While tending to his cattle in the mountains, he noticed signs of an imminent flood.
Read More: Shepherd's alert saves entire village in G-B
Using his mobile phone, which happened to have a working SIM card, he immediately alerted the villagers. His timely call prompted a mass evacuation just moments before floodwaters surged through the settlement.
"He is our saviour. We were all asleep and would have met a tragic fate had he not informed us," said Shakir Hussain, a resident of Roshan village. "A simple shepherd did what millions of rupees worth of equipment could not. All that expensive machinery in the name of 'early warning' is useless."
In recognition of his quick thinking, senior police officer Faisal Sultan awarded the shepherd Rs10,000, while the local community is mulling over honouring him with a medal.
The shepherd's vigilance has thrown into sharp relief the shortcomings of the government's Early Warning Devices (EWDs). Despite being installed at great expense across G-B to give timely alerts of floods and glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), the systems failed to sound the alarm during the recent floods that claimed 40 lives and left many more injured in areas where the devices were operational.
The incident in Roshan mirrors another event in Gulmit, Gojal, where approximately 60 volunteers managed to escape a flash flood at the last moment after traditional observation methods gave them a critical heads-up.
Also Read: Death toll from K-P floods crosses 350
Speaking to The Express Tribune, G-B government spokesman Faizullah Faraq also appreciated the role of the shepherd.
According to a PDMA report, the recent deluge left 393 people dead and 190 others injured across the province. Among the deceased were 300 men, 53 women, and 40 children, while the injured included 145 men, 27 women, and 18 children.
The floods also damaged 1,618 houses — 1,185 partially and 433 completely destroyed. Buner remained the worst-hit district, recording 234 fatalities, while Swabi reported 42 deaths. Other badly affected areas included Swat, Bajaur, Mansehra, Shangla, Lower Dir, Battagram, and Swabi.
This year, nearly 750 people have died since the season started, according to authorities. Pakistan is among the world's most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change and is increasingly facing extreme weather events. Monsoon floods submerged one-third of Pakistan in 2022, resulting in approximately 1,700 deaths.
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