GUJAR KHAN: Over a dozen houses have caved in and been severely damaged in landslides in the Kakrah town locality of Potha Bainsi village in the vicinity of a creek of Mangla dam near Mirpur city of Azad Kashmir.

The station house officer (SHO) of Mirpur Police Station, Raja Imtiaz Shauket, told reporters that the villagers had heard a rumbling noise, and, panic-stricken, they noticed cracks in the earth around their houses. Meanwhile, the police and the district administration evacuated the villagers.

According to the police official, no loss of life was witnessed as the people had shifted to other areas with their valuables.

However, over a dozen houses suffered irreparable damage.

According to Aamir Waqas, a social media activist, about a dozen houses, mostly swanky bungalows owned by overseas residents, have caved or developed cracks to the dangerous extent.

According to Mr Waqas, some of the swanky houses built at a cost of over Rs50 million were also badly affected. The residents of the area said that they had been living in the locality for decades, and this was the first time such a calamity had hit them out of the blue.

However, some of them believe that the rise of water levels in the Mangla reservoir might be the cause, as the locality was at the brink of creeks extending from the lake.

Published in Dawn, October 7th, 2025