The beauties of nature have a bewitching effect on a person: one wants to dissolve in magnificent landscapes and stay forever. But they can also be frightening, causing feelings of anxiety and apprehension. As an example, we can cite the unique Lake Attabad, which appeared due to a disaster that claimed human lives. And now the beautiful reservoir is both a burial place and a tombstone.
Hunza Valley
A Beautiful Attabad lake among the peak of Pakistan, which formed after the disaster
Attabad Lake strikes with its incredibly bright and clear sky blue hue. This makes the body of water seem peaceful and serene. But those who know its history compare the lake to a lurking predator or a sleeping dragon. Indeed, in fact, it claimed many lives and became a water grave.
First Image / Flickr
Attabad Lake was formed in a rocky bowl surrounded by the peaks of the Karakoram mountain range in Attabad Village, Hunza, Gilgit−Baltistan in northern Pakistan. And not so long ago in its place was a village of the same name. Not many people lived here in solitude, but they could not even imagine what kind of disaster would overtake them in 2010.
Image / Source
At the very beginning of the year, on January 4, a large-scale landslide occurred, which blocked the flow of the Hunza River for 5 months. It spread widely and very quickly flooded the surrounding valley with the settlements located in it. As a result, about a hundred small villages were affected, and the village of Attabad, which fell into the epicenter and under the landslide itself, ceased to exist together. Some of its residents managed to escape, but more than 20 people died and 6,000 people are displaced from upstream villages.
Source / Flickr
The raging water element flooded the only highway connecting the Hunza Valley with the rest of the country. People had to get out on boats and other handy craft. And today in this part of Pakistan you can only move in this way. Along the newly formed lake, it was necessary to equip the embankment and establish boat traffic.
The coastline of the newly formed lake has a length of about 21 km and over 100 ft deep. It is very deep, and therefore was able to shelter several settlements under its waters, of which now only memories remain. One can judge that many people once lived here by the stories of local residents who escaped the disaster and the houses that remained on the highest hills.
The lake has some truly hypnotic beauty. And the point, probably, is not only in its very rich blue color, but in the fact that it seems to blow from it with the enormous power of a temporarily asleep element. In addition to a landslide and a water flow, a strong earthquake worked over the area, due to which rocks collapsed and mudflows descended from the mountains.
Nature has completely changed its appearance, has become of little use for human life. In fact, this territory has to be reclaimed. The local nature gives the impression of pristine, virgin. And this also attracts the attention of tourists.
Source / Flickr
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Source / GoogleMap
Naturally, the Pakistani authorities are trying to make money on curious travelers, but part of the funds is invariably directed to the fund to help victims of landslides and floods. For tourists around the lake, which has become one of the country's leading attractions, a whole mini-town with hotels and boarding houses has been built, where you can comfortably relax, admiring the picturesque landscapes from the windows, ride a boat on the Attabad lake, fishes and their swim. However, scientists warn: Attabad feeds on water from melting glaciers, so it becomes larger in spring, and over time, a landslide dam on the river can break through, and then a new disaster will happen.
Attabad Lake | The lake formed after the disaster — Video
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