Video shows an avalanche blocking a road in G-B as people in the background can be heard screaming in panic
Pakistan is experiencing an intense heatwave this year, with the mercury crossing 50°C in some parts of the country. In its weather outlook for May 26-31, the National Disaster Management Authority warned that rising temperatures, heatwave conditions, flash floods, and landslides could impact several parts of the country, especially the northern and southern regions.
It added that there was also a risk of glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF) across Gilgit-Baltistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
Earlier, the NDMA also issued an advisory, warning of an increase in potential GLOF events from March to September 2026 due to an anticipated rise in temperatures, changing weather patterns, and possible early heatwave conditions in northern Pakistan.
Since Tuesday, a video has been circulating on X showing an avalanche blocking a road in Gilgit-Baltistan as people in the background can be heard screaming in panic, with some even chanting ‘Allahu Akbar’.
Many social media users shared the video claiming that the visuals were recent and raising alarm over Pakistan’s weakening glaciers. Some also used the clip to warn tourists heading up north for vacations.
The video was also shared by local digital news outlets on YouTube and Instagram, as seen here, here, here, and here.
It must be noted that none of these posts mentioned when the incident occurred.
A keyword search conducted to corroborate whether any national or local media outlets had reported on recent avalanches in G-B did not yield any results.
Conducting a Google reverse image search yielded a Facebook video shared by state media outlet Pakistan TV, dated March 13, with the caption, “An avalanche blocked a river in the mountains of Gilgit-Baltistan in northern Pakistan amid snowfall ahead of the spring season.”
The caption concluded with the hashtags #GilgitBaltistan #AvalancheAlert #NorthernPakistan #SnowfallImpact.
The video was also shared by Bol Hunza, a regional media network and page that covers news in the G-B region, on their Instagram account. It was dated March 13. According to the caption of the post, the incident occurred in the upper Hunza.
The same video was also shared by multiple users on X and Facebook at different periods of time during April and May.
Jamil Nagri, Dawn correspondent in G-B, also confirmed to iVerify Pakistan that no such event had taken place in the region recently and that the video dated back to March.
During an avalanche, a mass of snow, rock, ice, soil, and other material slides swiftly down a mountainside.
In a report released in March, the NDMA said that the incidence of avalanches is highest in Pakistan from February to April when heavy snowfall events are followed by temperature fluctuations, strong winds, and additional snow loading.
It further stated that expanding infrastructure, including the Karakoram Highway, hydropower installations, and settlements located in narrow valleys, increases exposure to avalanche hazards. Districts such as Chitral, Upper Dir, Ghizer, Hunza, Skardu, Neelum, and Haveli remain particularly vulnerable.
Research shows the frequency of avalanches in the Himalayan mountains has increased in recent years in what is called an “expected consequence” of climate change.
Conclusion
The claim that a viral video shows a recent snow avalanche in G-B is misleading.
The video is from March 2026. Moreover, according to the NDMA, the highest incidence of avalanches in Pakistan is from February to April.
This fact check was originally published by iVerify Pakistan — a project of CEJ-IBA and UNDP.
