▲ Scene of damage from the major floods in Nepal
A natural dam lake formed by debris in the upper reaches of the Himalayan mountainous region along the Nepal-China border has overflowed two days after a major flood, halting rescue operations and prompting evacuation orders.
According to AFP and Reuters on the 28th (local time), Nepalese police warned, "We have received information that the dam in Tibet has collapsed once again. All security personnel and rescue workers deployed for rescue and relief operations must remain vigilant and immediately evacuate to a safe place."
An official in Rasuwa, Bagmati Province, northern Nepal, also told Reuters that they received notice that the lake had breached its banks, adding, "We can see the river water level rising."
Prior to this, Chinese authorities stated that soil and rocks blocked a river in the upper reaches of the Gyirong port in the Xizang Autonomous Region (Tibet) hit by a massive debris flow, forming a natural dam and a large lake.
As of the morning of the previous day, it was estimated that about 2 million cubic meters of water had accumulated there.
Chinese authorities stated that there is a high risk of collapse as about 3 million cubic meters of additional water are expected to flow in over the next three days, and water is already flowing over the natural dam formed by sediment and rock.
However, it has not been confirmed whether the "dam collapse" information received by the Nepalese side refers to the collapse of the natural dam previously warned by Chinese authorities.
If the accumulated water continues to swell and the natural dam collapses, sudden floods or additional landslides could occur downstream.
Shanti Mahat, a spokesperson for Nepal's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, explained, "We have received information that muddy water is flowing a little more heavily in the Rasuwa region and near the Bhotekoshi River, where the massive flood occurred, and there is a risk of additional flooding."
However, it is not yet known if any additional casualties have occurred.
Reuters reported that rescue operations in the Nepalese region were suspended for an hour and a half on this day.
Helicopter rescue operations underway in the Rasuwa region were halted, and villagers hurriedly evacuated to higher ground on the hills.
Earlier, Chinese authorities also temporarily suspended search and rescue operations at the site, taking the safety of rescue workers into consideration.
Due to the massive floods that struck Nepal and Tibet, 472 people have died and 1,535 remain missing across both countries as of this day.
It has been suggested that this flood may have occurred as massive amounts of glaciers and rocks collapsed due to climate change in the Himalayas caused by global warming.
It was analyzed that a glacier about 600 meters wide collapsed along with rocks at an altitude of 5,200 meters on Mount Langtang Lirung (elevation 7,234m), generating an immense impact comparable to a magnitude 5.2 earthquake.
It is estimated that the massive flood occurred as the glacier and debris flow subsequently swept downstream for about 70 kilometers from the Lende River to the Trishuli River.
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