Daily Times

Two British mountaineers were rescued by a Pakistan Aviation helicopter from a remote peak after their Austrian climbing partner died as an avalanche hit him at the beginning of July.  Bruce Normand and Timothy Miller were taken to safety by the Aviation pilots after being stranded due to bad weather at more than 19,000ft.

Thomas Drew, Britain’s High Commissioner in Pakistan, said the mission had been “remarkable and dangerous”.He said: “Our gratitude to the Pakistan Army pilots who rescued two British climbers trapped by an avalanche on Ultar Sar peak near Hunza. Our thoughts with their Austrian fellow climber who did not survive the avalanche.” DG ISPR Major Gen Asif Ghafoor described it as a “daring mission”.

Earlier this year, the people of France and Poland praised Pakistan for helping in an operation carried out to rescue the Polish and French mountaineers on the killer mountain of Nanga Parbat in January. Elisabeth Revol from France and Polish national Tomek Mackiewicz were seen through binoculars by fellow climbers at the base camp.

In 2005, the Pakistani troops rescued a renowned Slovenian mountaineer stuck under a narrow ice ledge on one of the world’s highest peaks for six days.The crews, flying well above their helicopters’ normal operating altitudes, winched mountaineer TomazHumar off an icy ledge on the face of the 8,125m (26,657ft) Nanga Parbat, the ninth highest peak in the world.It is believed to be one of the few successful rescues carried out at such a high altitude.

Avalanches and landslides are frequent at the Siachen Glacier during the winter and temperatures there can drop as low as minus 60 degrees Celsius. An estimated 8,000 troops have died on the glacier since 1984, almost all of them from avalanches, landslides, frostbite, altitude sickness or heart failure rather than combat.

Pakistan Army is probably the only fully functional institution in Pakistan as it has been playing various laudable constructive roles in the development of the country. It is evident from history that Pak Army has always been at the forefront whenever natural calamities and other emergencies hit the nation. Be it the devastating earthquakes or the ravaging floods, in times of any natural disaster or even in human-induced disasters in Pakistan,governments have always turned to the military to control the situation. And, in turn, our brave forces have never disappointed the nation.

Be it the devastating earthquakes or the ravaging floods, governments have always turned to the military to control the situation. And, in turn, our brave forces have never disappointed the nation

In the event of any disaster, armed forces in general and Pakistan Army, in particular, are employed to conduct relief and rescue operations. Like many countries, particularly developing ones, Pakistan had no proper mechanism for disaster preparedness in place, and no civilian department even bothers to dedicate its personnel to handle the disaster relief.

The largest relief operation in the country’s history was launched when many parts of Pakistan were hit by the worst earthquake of October 8, 2005. This dreadful event not only exposed the fragility and weaknesses of the age-old system but also made people raise voices for the establishment of a robust and well-orchestrated system.Good governance is the key to success in better disaster management. Quality in governance must be ensured to instil confidence in masses. There should be a separate aviation department for rescuing purposes for better management and control. We should have our own teams to assist. Our approach to humanitarian aid missions should be rooted in the small team tactics and mission planning used for Special Forces. Humanitarian missions involve the airlift of relief workers, equipment, or supplies to victims of natural disasters, major accidents, civil conflicts, or political emergencies. These missions entail air evacuation from dangerous areas, aerial spraying of insecticide or fire-retardant chemicals, air rescue from shipwrecks, flooded areas, or other emergency situations.

Well-organised actions regarding mitigation and preparedness will help make the nation more disaster-resilient. Effective pre-disaster measures would also require less effort during the response phase of disaster management. While humanitarian missions may incur small-scale benefits, these projects ought to be carefully monitored and scrutinised.Special skills and training offer a thorough knowledge of foreign languages, customs and cultures. And apart from this, media should play its decisive role to highlight the efforts of Pakistan Army to bring stability in the country.As on one side the Army is fighting a war against terrorism while on other, it is always there whenever a need arises to control the deteriorating situation.

The author is a freelance columnist based in Peshawar

Published in Daily Times, July 28^th 2018.