At least eight people have died and hundreds are missing after an avalanche of ice and rock triggered catastrophic flash floods in Nepal on Wednesday, destroying villages and infrastructure across several districts. Authorities confirmed that 384 tourists, including 291 nationals from countries such as India, the United States, the United Kingdom and Malaysia, remain unaccounted for.
Bhotekoshi River bursts banks
The Bhotekoshi River burst its banks at around 9am on Wednesday (August 26), obliterating several villages along with roads and hydropower installations, officials confirmed. Warnings were subsequently issued to residents across several Nepalese districts, urging them to keep well clear of the banks of the Bhotekoshi, Trishuli and Narayani rivers.
The worst-hit area, Rasuwa district, experienced similar flash flooding to that which struck in August last year, when a glacial lake in neighbouring Tibet overflowed due to soaring temperatures in the mountain region. Nine people perished and vital infrastructure, including a bridge linking the two nations, was severely damaged on that occasion.
Rescue efforts and international help
"We have asked both India and China to help us with the rescue efforts," said Sasmit Pokharel, a spokesperson for the Nepali government.
Climate specialists at the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development believe a glacial avalanche most likely triggered Wednesday's flash floods. The Lhende Khola River, a tributary of the Bhotekoshi River, recorded the most severe flooding on Wednesday, experts confirmed.
Climate change impact
"The Lhende Khola has flooded twice in fourteen months, this time triggered by an ice rock avalanche from a glacier on the Nepal side that blocked the river and released a sudden surge downstream," said Saswata Sanyal, a disaster risk reduction specialist at the climate research group. "In a warming Himalaya, early warning is the first line of adaptation," he added.
The Himalayan region, which spans Nepal and several neighbouring countries including India, is particularly susceptible to torrential rainfall, flooding and landslides, as the area is heating up at a considerably faster rate than the rest of the world due to human-induced climate change. Studies have demonstrated that extreme weather events, including heatwaves, heavy rainfall and glacial melting, have grown increasingly frequent across the region.
Researchers at the Kathmandu research group established earlier this year that glaciers throughout the Hindu Kush Himalaya region are dissolving at an escalating pace, with ice loss rates having doubled since 2000, largely attributed to rising global temperatures and climate change.
