AUGUST2-2000
Slide
destroys Kande,
Swiss
climber appeals for help
By
Asem Mustafa Awan
ISLAMABAD
— Over hundred families are in the open as a land slide completely razed
the Kande village in the remote Northern Areas.
The
death toll is not known but over 500 people men women and children are
screaming for help and are praying every passing second for relief.
The
village in the Hushe valley which comes in the way for all the trekking
and mountaineering expeditions has maximum of the men working for the
expeditions as cooks, guides and porters. The village is also the last
link between remoteness of the mountains and human civilization as it is
the last village in the valley.
Swiss
expedition leader Karl Kobler who arrived from the Gasherbrum II base camp
to capital on Wednesday after putting 12 members out of 19 on the summit
on July 22 said," It was devastating to see such a wreckage and above
all the incident which happened two days ago has not been addressed by the
authorities."
He
said," I feel great pain and anguish that over 500 people men, women
and children are in the open and no rescue has been done till now."
"They
need shelter, food and medicine and government must hurry as the people
need help."
About
the weather in the region he said," It remained constantly bad."
He
stressed upon the government for the earliest assistance of Kande Village
which is completely razed by the slide.
He
said," The officials
should go there and see the misery of the people who are in the open and
praying for help which has so far failed to reach in the last two
days."
Elite
Swiss mountain guide Karl Kobler has been a regular visitor to Pakistan
over the years and has been supporting the porters of Hushe since long.