DistantNews
Support us
🇬🇧 United Kingdom /Disasters & Emergencies

Glacial collapse triggers massive flood in Nepal and Tibet, leaving hundreds dead or missing

From The Guardian · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Outcome reported
  • A glacial collapse caused a catastrophic flash flood in Nepal and Tibet, resulting in at least 165 deaths and hundreds missing.
  • Rescuers are searching for hundreds of missing individuals, including foreign nationals from India, the US, UK, Australia, and Canada.
  • The flood destroyed villages, roads, and infrastructure, with initial reports suggesting an earthquake, later corrected by the US Geological Survey to a seismic shock from the glacial collapse itself.

A catastrophic flash flood, triggered by a glacial collapse, has devastated parts of Nepal and Tibet, leaving a preliminary death toll of at least 165 people and hundreds more missing. The US Geological Survey confirmed the event, which saw torrents of water roar down valleys, obliterating entire villages.

Rescuers are urgently searching for the hundreds unaccounted for, a group that includes nationals from India, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada. Terrifying videos captured the moment a massive wall of water descended upon the border region on Wednesday, as people desperately tried to flee. The flood swept away trucks, houses, roads, and power projects in Nepal. Officials in Tibet reported fears of "major casualties" following a mudslide at a border land crossing.

In the affected areas, homes, trees, and vehicles were submerged or buried under mudslides. Helicopters worked throughout Thursday to airlift survivors. Nepal’s tourism ministry reported that 468 tourists and travelers, including 393 foreign nationals, were missing in the mountainous region, a popular destination for trekkers and pilgrims. Chinese state media indicated that at least 558 people were missing on the Tibet side, with at least 260 being foreign nationals.

I started running. Then a wall of water came thundering down as if it was an earthquake.

— Bibek KumalA survivor describes the moment the floodwaters hit.

Early reports from Nepali officials had suggested an earthquake might have caused the glacial collapse. However, the US Geological Survey later clarified that what was initially perceived as a 4.4 magnitude earthquake was actually a seismic shock generated by the collapse of glacial ice and rock. An initial study of satellite imagery indicated a landslide of ice and rock triggered the debris-laden flood in the Lhende River, located northeast of the Nepal-China border crossing.

Survivors recounted harrowing experiences. Bibek Kumal, a laborer working downstream from the hardest-hit Rasuwa district, described running from a "wall of water" that came "thundering down as if it was an earthquake." He survived by clinging to a mango tree as the torrent swept him away amid mud and debris.

Had there been no mango tree, I would ‌have been wa

— Bibek KumalA survivor explains how he managed to stay alive during the flood.
About this summary

Originally published by The Guardian in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog