Islamabad [Pakistan], July 27 : Pakistan has issued a glacial flood warning for its northwestern regions as the country faces above-average monsoon rainfall, raising fears of disasters similar to the catastrophic 2022 floods, Al Jazeera reported on Saturday.
As per Al Jazeera, citing Anwar Shahzad, spokesperson for Pakistan's Provincial Disaster Management Authority, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan is experiencing significantly heavier rains compared to the same time last year, prompting authorities to issue weather alerts for possible glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs).
Earlier this month, officials in an advisory warned that persistently high temperatures could accelerate the melting of snow and glaciers, potentially leading to weather-related disasters in vulnerable areas and highlighting the ongoing effects of climate change in Pakistan.
Spokesperson Faizullah Firaq of the Pakistan-occupied Gilgit-Baltistan (PoGB) government reported widespread destruction in certain areas, including damage to homes, infrastructure, agricultural land, and businesses.
Rescue operations are underway along the Babusar Highway, where flash floods hit nine villages, Al Jazeera reported.
Helicopters were deployed to evacuate stranded tourists from Fairy Meadows, a popular tourist destination in the PoGB region.
Abdul Samad from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Tourism Department said more than 500 tourists were safely evacuated from Naran after a cloudburst on Friday night triggered landslides and road closures. Heavy machinery is being used to clear debris and reopen access roads.
In PoGB, authorities have distributed emergency supplies, including tents, food, and medicine, to flood-hit communities. On Tuesday, a cloudburst caused floods and landslides in the region, resulting in three deaths and the temporary stranding of over 200 tourists, who were later rescued, Al Jazeera reported.
Zakir Hussein, head of the Disaster Management Authority of the region, said that while weather alerts help reduce tourist numbers in at-risk areas, they aren't always enough.
"Generally, tourists pay attention to our warning notices. Those who still choose to come are either those who did not see the warning or those who have some urgency to visit... At the end of the day, it is weather prediction, but considering the severity of the consequences, people should take it seriously," Hussein told Al Jazeera.
Although monsoon rains are a regular and vital part of South Asia's climate--supporting agriculture and water supplies--their negative impact has intensified due to rapid urbanisation, inadequate drainage systems, and increasingly frequent extreme weather events driven by climate change.
This year's monsoon, which continues through mid-September, has already claimed 260 lives across Pakistan, as reported by Al Jazeera.
The 2022 floods, by comparison, submerged a third of the country, killed over 1,700 people, and displaced more than 30 million.
Despite being home to more than 7,000 glaciers--the most outside the polar regions--Pakistan remains among the world's most climate-vulnerable nations, while contributing minimally to global greenhouse gas emissions.