A glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) from the Shishper Glacier on Saturday destroyed and swept away Hassanabad bridge of Hunza on the Karakoram Highway.
Footage shared on social media showed rampaging floodwaters tearing and sweeping away a section of the Hassanabad Bridge.
The Gilgit-Baltistan tourist police confirmed the incident, adding that the police has diverted the traffic to an alternate route on the Sas Valley Road. Local officials in Hassanabad are also helping the affected locals and tourists ensuring that people were not stranded due to the flooding. A statement issued by the district police said that control rooms were set up in Hunza and Gilgit, which could be contacted on 05813-930721-2 and 05811-930033, respectively.
Media reports quoted experts as saying that unusually high and abrupt temperature rises released huge amounts of water into the stream and surrounding areas. The water volume at the Shisper glacier lake had reportedly increased by 40% over the past 20 days due to the recent heatwave across the country, which also affected the north of the country.
The Met experts also said that rapidly melting glaciers have created more than 3, 000 glacial lakes in the northern areas, warning that thirty-three of these glacial lakes could burst soon. If that happens, torrents of water will course through streams.
Chief Secretary Gilgit-Baltistan Mohyuddin Ahmad Wani told media that the National Highway Authority (NHA) and Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) assured him that the bridge would be repaired as a matter of urgency.
Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman said the a few days ago the ministry had warned of an unprecedented heatwave across the country. She said that there were many such vulnerable areas in GB and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. “Pakistan has the highest number of glaciers outside the polar region and many are losing mass due to high global temperatures,” she pointed out.