GILGIT — The searing summer heat in northern Pakistan has shattered long-standing temperature records in Gilgit-Baltistan, raising grave concerns over accelerated glacial melt and the threat of catastrophic floods, reported by Dawn News.
According to a press release issued Saturday by the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), Chilas and Bunji—two key towns in Gilgit-Baltistan—recorded historic maximum temperatures of 48.5°C and 46.1°C respectively. These readings surpass previous highs set decades ago: 47.7°C in Chilas (1997) and 45.6°C in Bunji (1971).
The PMD warned that these persistently high temperatures over the mountainous north could trigger glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs)—sudden, devastating surges of water caused by melting glaciers. Vulnerable valleys in Gilgit-Baltistan and nearby Kashmir now face an elevated risk of flash flooding in the coming week.
Over 7 million people across Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) live under the shadow of GLOF threats, according to the Ministry of Climate Change. Authorities have urged immediate preparedness measures.
On Friday, the KP Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) issued high-risk alerts to five districts—Upper and Lower Chitral, Upper Dir, Swat, and Upper Kohistan—urging local officials to conduct evacuation drills, monitor glacial lakes closely, and stock emergency shelters.
“These soaring temperatures, coupled with an incoming weather system, pose a serious threat to life, livestock, and infrastructure,” the PDMA stated.
With ‘feels like’ temperatures already breaching 50°C in some urban centers last month, climate volatility in Pakistan’s north is no longer a distant concern—it’s a rapidly unfolding emergency.
