Satellite Monitoring of Pakistan's Rockslide‐Dammed Lake Gojal

Abstract

On 4 January 2010, a rockslide 1200 meters long, 350 meters wide, and 125 meters high dammed the Hunza River in Attabad, northern Pakistan, and formed Lake Gojal. The initial mass movement of rock killed 20 people and submerged several villages and 22 kilometers of the strategic Karakoram Highway linking Pakistan and China. Tens of thousands of people were displaced or cut off from overland connection with the rest of the country.On 29 May, the lake overflow began to pour through a spillway excavated by Pakistani authorities. On approximately 20 July, the lake attained a maximum depth of 119 meters and a torrent at least 9 meters deep issued over the spillway, according to Pakistan's National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). To date, the natural dam is holding and eroding slowly. However, the threat of a catastrophic outburst flood remains.