Rock breakers, northern Pakistan

After a glacial lake burst in 2015, Singal village was partly destroyed by flooding and the rock avalanche that came with it (some of this destruction can be seen in the last photo).

With the support of the Aga Khan Agency for Habitat, these men are using the rocks that came down the mountain to build protective walls that channel the river’s flow away from property in the event of another glacial burst.

Unfortunately, due to climate change these events are more and more common in mountainous regions.

Breaking rocks with metal mallet, blood and sweat.

It takes experience and knowledge of rock textures to know where the seams lie that can be used to crack open each rock.

A cracked rock.

The cracked rocks are then broken down into smaller flat edged rocks that can be stacked on top of each other and used to create the protective walls.

Metal wire is then used to wrap around the walls to ensure they maintain their shape.

Building up a wall.

The boss directing the team.

A wall emerges from the rocks on the left. To the right of the wall is the river bed. In the event of flash floods during high Summer, the river can swell and destroy property and land and endanger lives.

A completed section of the wall. It’s easy to see from here how much manual labour and time is required to do this work. No doubt the men are fortified by the knowledge that this wall will protect their land, families and community.

When I visited this this Singal village in 2015, I witnessed the destruction of a recent flood and rock avalanche. The river bank burst and some people’s homes were completely destroyed. Precious farmland was also lost.