Reattach a "Detached" fork in Github?

Thanks to @saeedgnu for the elegant and perfect suggestion. Solution was to:

1. Make sure to pull and update local git repository from personal, detached fork GitHub repository
2. Delete personal, detached fork GitHub repo
3. Re-fork repository on GitHub
4. The key: the local git repository is still pointing at the correct GitHub repo. It has the current code from your now-deleted, detached GitHub fork, so you can push changes (and continue to submit pull requests) like nothing ever happened!

Phew. Crisis averted.

The answer to delete the repository is destructive and will lose any progress and comments in open pull requests.

The best solution is to contact GitHub via a support message detailing that you have changed a repository from private to public and the forks are in a detached state. GitHub will do the change for you, in my case within 30mins.

Support contact form: Github support contact page