DISASTER IN LEH – THE PUBLIC HOSPITAL
On the night of August 6, 2010, Leh, the ancient capital city of Ladakh, was hit by a cloud burst. Torrential rain triggered a giant landslide that swept away houses, cars, hospitals, schools and vast stretches of pristine landscape in its wake. Over 200 people lost their lives. Instantaneously. 500 are still missing.
Cloudbursts are usually triggered by mountain formations that lead to lifting of moisture-laden winds, forming a giant convective cloud that eventually bursts when temperatures rise. A cloudburst in Ladakh is a rare occurrence. The region sits in a rain-shadow area on the western edge of the great Tibetan plateau, nestled between the Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges. Ladakh’s high altitude desert landscapes are breathtaking and attract thousands of intrepid tourists each year.
Experts say that climate change is responsible for an increase in the number of extreme weather events around the world. The earth’s warming has led to severe glacier erosion in the Himalayas and a gradual but potentially devastating shift in rainfall patterns has emerged. In 2010, record rainfalls in the Himalayas wreaked untold damage through flash floods in Pakistan, China and India. Thousands lost their lives. Yet more lost their property and livelihoods.
The SNM Public Hospital is the pride of Ladakh. As one of the few hospitals in this remote region, complete with emergency services and modern equipment, the hospital serves as the life blood of the region’s mountainous inhabitants, who often travel days to benefit from the hospital’s free health services.
Located in the low-lying Choglomsar region of the capital, the hospital lay directly in the path of the deluge that swept down the mountain side directly above. The meters-high banks of sludge, debris and wreckage that the landslide left behind will take months to clear. With winter approaching fast and public roads and communications to the rest of the country severely damaged, the knock-on effects on the region’s public health services system are going to be severe.
Ladakhis face a harsh Himalayan winter ahead.
This is a reportage series on the disaster at the public hospital in Leh. Shot with a Canon 5D a few days after the flash flood. Low available light. For more on this series, please visit www.rohanghosh.net.
Photo 1: As the wall of debris rushed into the SNM Hospital in the dead of the night, patients and staff alike were caught unawares. In the mud that rose to the window sills, abandoned shoes bear testimony to the suddenness and the violence with which the mud slide hit the hospital.
Photo 2: In the Pathology Lab, all that escaped the mayhem consisted of two certificates for blood donors.
Photo 3: In the gloom and gore, an icon of hope. A small photo of the Dalai Lama that was meant to bring good luck.
Photo 4: The Pediatric Ward bore the brunt of the impact. Beds were knocked around like skittles by the force of the deluge, blocking the exits and trapping the young patients inside. Many children lost their lives.
Photo 5: Child friendly murals on the walls and charts clipped to the bedsteads, poignant reminders of the Pediatric Ward that was.
Photo 6: The overhead surgeon’s lamp and a lone desk keep vigil in the bare Operation Theater. The mud slide destroyed all the equipment inside. An army of volunteers comprising locals and tourists alike helped clear the debris.
Photo 7: Outside, a scene of desolation. Scattered debris of telephones and assorted medical equipment litter the hospital grounds. A man climbs up a pole to try and restore the telephone lines. All communications to this relatively remote part of the world, including roads, bridges and telecommunications, were cut off for days.
Photo 8: On a fallen roof slab, volunteers take a break from the numbing task of looking for victims and clearing the debris. Many volunteers were tourists who came on holiday and stayed on to lend a helping hand.
Photo 9: Nearby, a woman takes in the wreckage of a car, smashed beyond recognition against a building. An advertising board above mocks nature’s handicraft.
Photo 10: A jeep swept down the hillside lies smashed against the hospital’s boundary walls, tangled in a web of Tibetan prayer flags that are ubiquitous in this part of the world.
Photo 11: As Leh tries to come to terms with the scale of the tragedy, a woman reflects, then breaks down, sobbing.
Photo 12: Life must go on. As a Ladhaki family await the start of a candle light vigil, a woman holds on to a polyester bag containing all she could save. She has no home to go back to. Nearby, a man shades his eyes, as though trying to peer into a murky future.
Photo 13: Ladakhis are peaceful God-fearing people. After the devastation, devotees offer prayers to a giant statue of Maitreya, an incarnation of the Lord Buddha.
