Glacier collapse in Nepal suspected as trigger for devastating flash floods
The Chinese government on Friday said the collapse of a glacier in the Nepalese highlands is suspected to have triggered the disaster on both sides of the border that has killed at least 480 people.
“We note that experts and official agencies from China and Nepal have conducted a preliminary assessment of the cause of the disaster,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian told reporters in Beijing when asked about the flash floods that struck northern and central Nepal and southern Tibet on Wednesday morning.
President Xi Jinping has directed officials to make every effort to locate all Chinese citizens and foreign nationals who remain missing.
Floods and landslides struck northern and central Nepal, sweeping through settlements along the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli rivers, carrying people and debris downstream.
On the Chinese side of the border, mudslides hit Gyirong County in the southwestern Xizang Autonomous Region, also known as Tibet.
“The disaster was likely triggered by the collapse of a glacier in the Nepalese highlands,” Lin said.
The statement came as the death toll from the devastating flash floods rose to 480, while more than 1,200 people, mostly foreign nationals, remain missing.
Nepalese police said the death toll from the flash floods has reached 475, while China confirmed five deaths.
Fresh concerns emerged on Friday after a large dam lake formed by the flash floods was reported to have burst and could trigger another surge of water into the Bhotekoshi River in Nepal, according to the Kathmandu Post newspaper.
Beijing on Thursday warned that a lake near the confluence of the Chhochen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo rivers had “already overflowed” and was at high risk of bursting.
The two rivers merge before entering Nepal, where the flow is known as the Bhotekoshi River, a major tributary of the Trishuli River.
“Information has been received that the lake on the Chinese side has burst. Therefore, preparations are being made to dispatch helicopters stationed in Dhunche and Rasuwa to conduct reconnaissance,” said a rescue official at Tribhuvan International Airport in Nepal.
Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Mitigation Authority said water levels in the Bhotekoshi River had risen sharply and warned of the possibility of additional flooding.
However, Nepalese Education Minister Sasmita Pokharel said there was “no major risk in the near term,” according to Online Khabar media.
Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kathmandu said 596 people from 33 countries remain missing.
A further 127 Nepalese citizens are also unaccounted for, according to the Nepal Tourism Board.
China said 558 people, including 260 foreign nationals, are missing in Tibet as search and rescue operations continue.
Data shared by the Nepalese and Chinese governments shows around 1,281 people, including 856 foreign nationals, remain unaccounted for.
Lin said details regarding the missing foreign nationals are “being verified” and that Beijing “has notified the embassies of the relevant countries.”
China’s ruling Communist Party leaders met in Beijing on Friday, chaired by President Xi, who stressed that “all relevant authorities and departments must take decisive and effective measures for rescue work.”
“China will provide emergency assistance to disaster-affected areas in Nepal and carry out international rescue cooperation,” the meeting stated, according to China’s state news agency Xinhua.
The surge of water on Wednesday caused flooding in the Bhotekoshi River in Rasuwa, northern Nepal. Meanwhile, flash floods and landslides struck the Timure and Syaphrubesi areas, causing extensive damage before the floodwaters flowed downstream towards the Trishuli River.