Free Republic

ISLAMABAD: A massive glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) occurred in Hunza district's Hassanabad village Saturday, sweeping away the Hassanabad bridge on the Karakoram Highway. The Shisper Glacier started discharging 5,000 cusecs of water owing to premature melting, leaving Hunza, Gilgit disconnected. The flow of water, however, reduced by Sunday morning, Hunza Deputy Commissioner Usman Ali said. The official said that a temporary bridge will be built after the water completely drains out of the lake. Scottish Meteorologist Scott Duncan warned that there could be more glacial meltings due to continuously rising temperatures. He forecast that the temperatures would "inevitably surpass...

China's move to construct five tunnels to open up a new section of the Karakoram Highway in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) last month has signalled Beijing’s intent to go forward with ambitious projects despite India’s increasingly vocal concerns and rising security concerns in the restive disputed region. In a major project that will ensure year-round land connectivity linking China and Pakistan through PoK, the China Road and Bridge Corporation has constructed five seven km-long tunnels on the Karakoram Highway. Earlier, this particular section had been cut off on account of a barrier lake formed at Attabad, which had blocked access since...