Lest we forget: update on Attabad lake disaster
Photo Source: GB Times
Lake inundates more areas
Source
ISLAMABAD, Jun 26 (APP)- The water outflow from Attabad lake in Hunza has reached to 15300 cusecs as more areas in upper Hunza Gojal submerged with rising level of the lake, a private TV channel reported Saturday. Meanwhile, the local residents were blasting big boulders to widen the spillway resulting in bigger outflow of the water from the lake. The water discharge from the lake has soared to 15,300 cusecs whereas inflow is 12,100 cusecs. Many houses and fields have submerged in upper Hunza Gojal due to rise in the lake level. Also, RCC Bridge, the lone land connection between Chaman Gul and Galmat has inundated.
Attabad IDPs threaten to commit suicide
Source
June 27, 2010
HUNZA: The IDPs of Attabad Lake have threatened government of committing suicide given the water outflow from spillway does not get increased, vowing that everyday five ‘Kafanposh’ (shroud-wearing) men will jump into the lake to die in protest against government’s non-seriousness to tackle the issue, Geo news reported Sunday morning.
Meanwhile, the water level in Attabad Lake is being witnessed increasing rapidly with water outgoing through spillway slightly up. The water outflow through spillway is 15583 cusecs a day whereas owing to slowness in melting of glaciers, the water inflow is not alarming with no major increase or decrease in water level at lake for last 24 hours, government officials claimed.
Shishkat and Gulmit back to the stone age!
Gulmit, June 27: Power pylons between Gulmit and Hussaini have been caused to submerge in the lake formed on Hunza River, disrupting electricity supply to Shishkat, Gulmit and Ghulkin. People in these villages are living without electricity for the past five days. The local people have demanded of the government to restore the power supply by erecting the power pylons.
It is pertinent to note here that the local people had voluntarily shifted the power pylons to higher elevations when the lake had started submerging low laying parts of different villages. The people, however, don’t seem much optimistic about the government’s response. “They have not been able to complete provision of facilities at the region’s only hospital. I don’t think they would be interested in doing anything for us”, a local man told Pamir Times.
Others also doubt the government’s intentions about provision of compensation. “I think everything is lost”, said a senior citizen. “They are not going to give us anything”, he feared.
Lest we forget…..
Hunza disaster: critique and lessons learned
By Azam Beg Tajik
Sunday, 27 Jun, 2010
On January 4, in Attabad Hunza, nature repeated its dreadful show again as was in 1858 within the same radius and scale. In 1858, the historic Ghareyat (Attabad) landslide had blocked the river for six months and villages up to Passu were completely submerged whereas in the downstream the flood waves caused the river level at Attock on the Indus lowlands to rise 9 m in ten hours. Similarly, lacier lake burst in the Shimshal valley led to flood surges in 1884, 1893, 1905, 1906, 1927, 1928 and 1959. The 1906 flood raised the river level at Chalt by 15m and the 1959 wave destroyed Passu village.
Richard Hughes, Consultant Aga Khan Cultural Services had a short report on the expected risks back in 2003. “Atabad is in an extremely remote location where incredible dynamic mountain building and erosional processes are continuously at play. Life here is, at best, precarious. A small magnitude earthquake along way off has the capability to further trigger dramatic landscape changes, which further makes life very risky. Living in such hazard-prone environments, has increasing risks, as the population expands and good quality/safer agricultural land becomes less available or too expensive to buy”.
The impact of Jan 4 landslide can be categorised in three phases as follow:
As Attabad is the direct hit area it bore the main brunt resulting in loss of life, property, farm lands, orchards and livestock and causing displacement of the population of the affected area. The massive landslide blocked Hunza River completely. As a result, the geographically largest Tehsil of Gilgit-Baltistan, Gojal, upper Hunza, has been cut-off from the rest of the country and the world as a long stretch of the KKH has been submerged. The blockage has placed a population of 25,000 people in Gojal at great danger facing severe medical, food, transportation and livelihood scarcity. The damaged KKH and submersion of cultivable lands (approximately 40,000 kanals so far) has destroyed the source of survival of the affected people. The trade between China and Pakistan and tourism industry have caused a loss of Rs3 billion in border trade activities and approximately Rs2 billion in tourism industry.
The impact on downstream Hunza, Nagar, Gilgit, Diamer, Basham, Batagram, Mansehra, Tarbela Dam can be imagined if one remembered the experience of 1858 landslide disaster. If the blockage bursts, it will hit 36 villages like Ahmedabad, Ganish, Rahimabad, Shayar, Sumayer, Askordas and others in Gilgit and Diamer districts. Due to precautionary measures, the authorities have evacuated the population from these villages and established IDP camps. The scale of disaster and impact is expected as the worst scenario case, which will wash away the properties, agricultural lands famous fruit tree, KKH and bridges and the important geological sites by affecting more then 50,000 population directly, and two million indirectly.
The role of government and other agencies in this calamity has been less than satisfactory. The federal government, NDMA and FCNA responded well in terms of showing presence at the scene on the second day, providing helicopter services for evacuation and transportation of goods, but again the local administration misled the officials about the realities on ground. The wide spread rumours about the technical survey of the dam, contract with China for breaching the dam and clearing KKH in short time of period, compensation and relief activities were validated by the local administration off the record and during informal discussions. These rumours (wrong/right) benefited the opposition and nationalist parties to gather and create soft image among the affected people for their political interest.
The political parties confined their so-called activities and presence at the IDP camps in Hunza and never looked at the sufferings of 25,000 stranded people upstream and the same figure of IDPs downstream. After four months, when media started giving projection on the disaster, the local and national leadership came forward to do politics on dead bodies. Even the prime minister’s package created confusion among the affected population.
International agencies cannot be approached for help as the authorities have not done their homework and possess inaccurate data. Media is playing an influential role and is the only sign of hope for the people to convey their messages on ground realities and get attention and help from the government, people of Pakistan and international community.
It is strongly recommended that inefficient and dishonest government officials must not be assigned tasks in such situation where lives and properties are at great risks due to their negligence. Reconstruction and rehabilitation strategy should be devised based on the experience from 2005 earthquake. As the area is prone to a variety of natural hazards action is needed to cope with these situations by continuous risk assessment and by integrated multi–hazard vulnerability and risk mapping. The concerned authorities must wake up now and prove that these offices are for the people and community well-being.
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/local/islamabad/hunza-disaster-critique-and-lessons-learned-760