[Anchor]
The Chinese government has unveiled the site of a massive flood disaster to the foreign press for the first time. Seemingly conscious of controversies over Beijing allegedly concealing the scale of the tragedy, officials also emphasized that they will share glacier information more proactively going forward.
Reporting from Beijing, here is correspondent Han Sang-woo.
[Reporter]
Hundreds of yellow chrysanthemums lie right in the middle of the disaster site.
They were placed to honor the victims killed in this disaster and to pray for the safe return of the missing.
This is the disaster site at the Gyirong Port in China's Xizang Autonomous Region. Piles of dirt still cover the spots where a bridge connecting China and Nepal, a five-story checkpoint, and a large parking lot once stood.
With the soil having dried out somewhat, on-site search and recovery operations have become slightly easier.
The Chinese government has opened this site, which saw massive casualties, to foreign media for the first time.
During an on-site briefing targeted at media outlets from select Western countries like the U.S. and U.K., as well as neighboring nations including Russia, India, and Pakistan, the Chinese government revealed that the toll currently stands at 43 dead and 519 missing, among whom 261 are foreign nationals from 23 countries.
The Chinese government also stressed that it is developing an intelligent meteorological early-warning system to share information with Nepal in order to prevent similar disasters.
[Su Fengcheng / Researcher, Chengdu Institute of Biology and Mountain Hazards, Chinese Academy of Sciences: We must utilize international cooperation platforms to promote data sharing and joint risk assessment across river basins with countries in the Himalayan region, and seek to establish a cross-border early-warning information system.]
Immediately after the disaster, the Nepali side expressed frustration over a lack of information sharing by China. In response, China added that it will step up early warnings and provide status updates on glaciers and barrier lakes to Nepal.
The Chinese government's abrupt decision to open the massive flood disaster site to foreign media appears to be a response to criticisms regarding a lack of access to the affected areas and insufficient information disclosure.
(Video Editing: Chae Chul-ho)
※
Copying, redistribution, and unauthorized use in AI training are strictly prohibited.