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Nepal Flood Disaster Raises Calls for Stronger Monitoring, Evacuation Planning
(MENAFN) The deadly flash floods and mudslides that devastate the Himalayan border area between Nepal and China should serve as a “wake-up call” for countries across the region, highlighting the need for stronger disaster preparedness and monitoring systems.
The warning comes as the death toll from the Aug. 26 disaster reaches 1,130 on Wednesday, while rescue and search teams continue looking for nearly 4,500 people still reported missing, one week after the catastrophe.
“Such a disaster is inevitably coming always in the dynamic glacial and seismically active environment of the high Himalayas and the Karakorams,” Daanish Mustafa, a professor of critical geography, said.
The disaster begins last Wednesday when a glacier on Nepal’s Mount Langtang Lirung breaks apart at an elevation of roughly 5,200 meters (17,060 feet). The collapse triggers a massive mixture of ice, rocks, water and debris that rushes through valleys along the border.
The resulting floods and landslides cause widespread destruction across several areas of Nepal, including Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, Kavre and the Kathmandu Valley.
On the Chinese side, the disaster also overwhelms the Gyirong border crossing with Nepal in southwestern Tibet, also referred to as the Xizang Autonomous Region, burying parts of the facility under debris.
“This was a most unfortunate incident and sadly it was not preventable,” Mustafa said.
Authorities continue to assess the scale of the disaster as search operations remain underway. On the Nepalese side alone, 3,916 people are still listed as missing, including 639 workers and personnel stationed at hydropower projects across the landlocked country.
The scale of the destruction underscores the vulnerability of communities and infrastructure in the high Himalayan region and increases calls for improved early-warning systems, closer monitoring of unstable glacial areas and more effective evacuation preparedness.
The warning comes as the death toll from the Aug. 26 disaster reaches 1,130 on Wednesday, while rescue and search teams continue looking for nearly 4,500 people still reported missing, one week after the catastrophe.
“Such a disaster is inevitably coming always in the dynamic glacial and seismically active environment of the high Himalayas and the Karakorams,” Daanish Mustafa, a professor of critical geography, said.
The disaster begins last Wednesday when a glacier on Nepal’s Mount Langtang Lirung breaks apart at an elevation of roughly 5,200 meters (17,060 feet). The collapse triggers a massive mixture of ice, rocks, water and debris that rushes through valleys along the border.
The resulting floods and landslides cause widespread destruction across several areas of Nepal, including Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, Kavre and the Kathmandu Valley.
On the Chinese side, the disaster also overwhelms the Gyirong border crossing with Nepal in southwestern Tibet, also referred to as the Xizang Autonomous Region, burying parts of the facility under debris.
“This was a most unfortunate incident and sadly it was not preventable,” Mustafa said.
Authorities continue to assess the scale of the disaster as search operations remain underway. On the Nepalese side alone, 3,916 people are still listed as missing, including 639 workers and personnel stationed at hydropower projects across the landlocked country.
The scale of the destruction underscores the vulnerability of communities and infrastructure in the high Himalayan region and increases calls for improved early-warning systems, closer monitoring of unstable glacial areas and more effective evacuation preparedness.
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