An avalanche in the Astore district in Gilgit Baltistan killed 11 people and injured 13, said the region’s disaster management authority on Saturday. The snow slide swept through the Shounter Top area.

“The avalanche incident took place on Saturday at 4am,” said the Disaster Management Authority’s report. “The people of Bakarwal tribe who were hit by the avalanche were coming from Kashmir towards Astore.”

The pass, which is located at 4,420 meters (14,501ft) above sea level, connects the Astore district of the Gilgit-Baltistan region to the bordering Kashmir valley.

Eight bodies – out of the 11 dead – have been recovered and the search is on for the rest. The deceased included two children, four women, and two men, according to an update from the Pakistan Army’s rescue team. They were sent to their native villages.

The report added that 12 people were in critical condition. The injured persons have been shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital Astore.

The Force Command Northern Area’s heli service has been obtained for the rescue operation. Emergency has been declared in the hospitals of Gilgit, Astore and Skardu.

Earlier officials told Aaj News that multiple families of shepherds were traveling into the area from the neighbouring Azad Jammu and Kashmir region when they were caught in the avalanche.

The National Disaster Mangaement Authority said in a statement that the injured, including a child, have been taken to a local hospital where they are said to be in a critical condition.

Harsh weather conditions hampered the rescue operation and made access to the remote scene difficult.

In summer, the nomads move goat herds from the plains of Punjab to the high grasslands in the Kashmir valley, and then onwards to the adjoining Gilgit Baltistan through the Shounter Pass.

It is the deadliest avalanche this season so far though not the first one. Avalanche killed at least three people in Naltar Valley and Shigar earlier this winter.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Gilgit Baltistan Chief Minister Khalid Khurshid instructed the relevant authorities to rescue the injured and ensure the best possible treatment for them.

Pakistan, which in recent years has faced record monsoon rains and glacier melt in northern mountains, is among the top 10 countries at risk of natural disasters due to climate change.

“Such incidents are rising in Pakistan due to the impact of climate change,” Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a statement.

Sharif called on the international community to fulfil its responsibility to save developing countries facing economic challenges from adverse effects of climate change.

Deputy Inspector General of Police for the Diamer-Astore Division Tufail Mir told the Associated Press of Pakistan that a control room has been established in the district to coordinate rescue efforts and aid in the recovery of individuals trapped under the debris.

Acting Deputy Commissioner of Astore Waseem Abbas thanked the law enforcement agencies, state institutions, and political leadership for the rescue work.

Climate change

Pakistan is among the worst affected countries by climate change. The GB region has over 5,000 glaciers and countless glacial lakes, according to Met Office. Some of them have been declared “most dangerous”.

Many experts have said that a large number of people living alongside such streams were at “risk of flooding”. Over 20 Glacial Lake Outburst Flood project events were reported across GB last year, according to the GB Disasters Management Authority.

The incident comes at a time when the country grapples with the impact of climate change.

Pakistan’s northern areas are vulnerable to the effects of climate change as the region. The GB is home to the highest number of small and large glaciers outside the polar regions.

At least 110 flash floods were reported in GB between June 30 and Aug 26 in 2022, according to a report issued by the GB government last year, Pamir Times reported. Over a dozen people were killed.

The report mentions that private properties worth over Rs4 billion were destroyed.

“418 houses were completely damaged and 257 houses partially so; 22 powerhouses were destroyed; and 78 drinking water supply schemes and 500 irrigation water channels were damaged. Fifty-six bridges and 49 roads were washed away,” it said.