36 glacial lakes in G-B unsafe: weatherman

An outburst may cause severe damage to lives and properties

GILGIT:

Thirty-six glacial lakes in various valleys of Gilgit-Baltistan have been declared dangerous, and seven of them pose the most threat to the people, said the Met Office chief on Tuesday.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) head was on an official visit to G-B, where flash floods triggered by monsoon rains and melting glaciers have wreaked havoc on the infrastructure in various valleys, causing losses of billions of rupees.

“These lakes carry the risk of outburst,” said PMD Director General Dr Ghulam Rasul, “and if that happens, it could cause severe damage to lives and properties.”

He was addressing a workshop titled ‘Disaster awareness and the role of the media’, which was organised for Gilgit-based journalists by Focus Humanitarian Assistance (FOCUS), an international group of agencies for provision of emergency relief. Around two dozen journalists from the print and electronic media attended the event.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 11^th, 2015.