Please go through the article of Saeed Shah, published on Mar 25, 2010 in Guardian.co.uk
Tsunami-like wave caused by Pakistani landslide 'could wipe out villages'
A landslide in northern Pakistan has created a huge lake that could burst its banks and create a tsunami-like wave 20 metres high that would travel hundreds of miles before hitting a dam reservoir close to Islamabad, the capital.
The warning, in a report by a British landslide expert, comes amid work on a channel to drain water from the rapidly growing lake. The government has been accused of acting slowly to tackle the problem, as it lacks an emergency evacuation plan for people living downstream.
A massive landslide in Hunza in January blocked a river, destroying a village and killing 19 residents. The lake created is seven miles long and 70 metres deep.
Faiz Ali, a conservationist in the area, said: "People are getting really desperate. The upstream communities are totally cut off. The lake is slowly drowning the trees and then the houses."
David Petley, a specialist on landslides at Durham University, who visited the site for a local NGO, said the water could reach the top of the lake wall in mid- or late April. Once that happened, the wall could collapse. "A big disaster is not inevitable but there is a significant risk," said Petley.
The lake is rising by 35cm per day. But with the onset of summer melting snow in the mountains, the flow of water into it is increasing. Narrow river valleys run nearly 400 miles down from Hunza to the Tarbela dam, outside Islamabad. The narrow valleys means a flash-flood wave could be sustained that whole distance, wiping out villages along the way. Although some have suggested that the large Tarbela dam itself could be in danger, Petley said that its reservoir could absorb the water.
Army engineers are working to create a spillway to drain the water away slowly. Jameel Ahmad, deputy speaker of the provincial parliament, said the lake wall was very unsteady and difficult to work on. "Whatever is possible is being done," he said. "The water is rising day by day. If it bursts, all the bridges down to Tarbela will be damaged."
The lake has cut off the Karakoram highway, the road link between Pakistan and China, stopping cross-border trade. Chinese authorities are said to be annoyed with Pakistan's slow response.
Link: Tsunami-like wave caused by Pakistani landslide 'could wipe out villages' | World news | The Guardian
