Search Ongoing in Gilgit-Baltistan for Missing Tourists After Vehicles Found

Several vehicles have been retrieved from the debris in flood-hit Gilgit-Baltistan, though rescue teams are still searching for those missing in the disaster, the GB government spokesperson reported on Saturday.

Flash floods swept through the region last week, triggering landslides, cutting off access routes, and damaging over 500 houses, roads, and other infrastructure. At least 10 people — most of them tourists — have been confirmed dead, while 10 to 15 more remain unaccounted for.

GB government spokesperson Faizullah Faraq stated that search operations along the Babusar Highway are ongoing, and several vehicles washed away by the floodwaters have been recovered.

“The cars have been found, but there is still no trace of the missing individuals,” he said.

Faraq added that rehabilitation work has been expedited in affected areas. He also confirmed that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected to visit Gilgit-Baltistan within the next few days to meet victims and review relief efforts.

On Friday, the prime minister reaffirmed his commitment to personally visit GB in solidarity with the victims and directed the federal government to extend full support for relief and reconstruction.

According to Faraq, water and power supply have been restored to many parts of the region, while communication lines along the Babusar Highway and other key points have also been reconnected.

The recent floods have underscored the growing threat of climate change in GB, where rising temperatures, erratic weather patterns, and accelerated glacial melting are leading to cloudbursts and flash floods.

Just yesterday, a glacier burst in Bagrot Valley, killing one person when a father and son fell into a ravine and were buried under debris. More cloudburst-triggered floods also struck Ghizer and Hunza districts on Thursday.

Last week, floods caused by heavy rainfall in the Babusar area of Diamer district claimed the lives of at least four tourists, injured two, and left 15 others missing.