Landslide blocks road in Baltistan, details still unconfirmed

A landslide has blocked a road in Baltistan, The Express Tribune reported, cutting traffic on a route in the mountainous division where a single closure can strand whole valleys.

The report, as available to Skardu Times, did not name the road or the district where the slide occurred, did not say when it happened, and gave no information on casualties, on vehicles or passengers held up, or on the size of the blockage. It also did not say whether machinery had been sent to clear the route.

No statement on the closure had been issued by the Gilgit-Baltistan government, the district administration or the police by the time this report was filed, and Skardu Times could not independently confirm the location or extent of the slide.

Roads across Gilgit-Baltistan are cut every year by landslides, rockfall and flooding, and closures in the narrower valleys can last from a few hours to several days before earthmovers reach the site. Baltistan's towns, including Skardu, are linked to the rest of the region by a small number of roads that follow river beds and run beneath steep, loose slopes. The route between Skardu and Gilgit follows the Indus and is regularly affected in summer and during the spring melt.

The Express Tribune was the only news outlet carrying the report when this item was filed.

Which road is affected, how long the closure is expected to last and whether traffic is being diverted cannot be established from the report alone. Travellers and transporters using routes in Baltistan have no official advisory to work from so far, and the district administrations in Skardu, Shigar, Kharmang, Ghanche and Roundu have not confirmed whether the slide falls in their area.

Skardu Times will update this report when the Gilgit-Baltistan government, the district administration or police release details of the closure.