The unfolding tragedy in the Tibetan-Nepal region is perhaps one of the most unprecedented in recent history. Flash floods is nothing new in the areas close to the Himalayas but the sheer magnitude of this landslide induced flood and the havoc it has unleashed downstream into the little towns of Timure and Rasuwagadhi along the Chinese border is simply heart wrenching.
The human tragedy associated with it continues to grow every minute even as rescuers try hard to salvage whatever possible from the gigantic pile of debris, mud and iron that has been left behind by water.
What has also caught the attention of the world is the town of Syabrubesi which is one of the main the trekking gateways to the Himalayan region visited by hundreds of international trekkers every day. It is also a major religious hub to the famous Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage. The entire region has been flattened with scores of hotels and resorts washed away. Hundreds of international travelers including those from the US, the UK and Australia are reported missing as per travel agents records.
Seventy seven pilgrims and three volunteers of the famous Isha Foundation are believed to have been lost when the Gyirong Immigration Centre at the China-Tibetan border located just north of Syabrubesi was washed away in the floods. The foundation’s founder Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev made a very emotional announcement of the loss to his followers with people in the room heard breaking down on hearing the news. The volunteers consisted of 22 from the US, 12 from Canada, 11 from Australia and 9 from the United Kingdom apart from members from other parts of Europe, Singapore and India.
Though many theories are floating on the cause of these gigantic flash floods, the most credible one that has emerged is from the US Geological Survey which put the blame on a glacier collapse near the Langtang Liruk Peak in Nepal which is approximately nine miles west of the site of the floods.
The theory talks of two major activities which might have triggered a full or partial glacier collapse. The primary one is the continuously occurring natural tectonic movement in the Himalayas where one plate has been pushing another plate up, forcing the glacier to narrow down as it is pushed up. But the second one which is the immediate trigger for this inevitable tragedy is climate change. With the temperatures in the Himalayas shooting up every year, ice has been melting like never before.
Scientists at International Centre for Intergrated Mountain Development (ICIMD) have been warning for years about the melting ice and permafrost in the Himalayas often getting little attention than what it deserves.
A recent study by ICIMD reveals that Himalayan glaciers have been losing ice at double the rate since the year 2000 and flash floods and landslides induced by glacier collapses would be the order of the day in the this region.
It is believed that a mother of such event took place between Tuesday night and Wednesday early morning somewhere along the Langtang Liruk Peak where a collapsing glacier led to a massive landslide. The resulting ice and rock hit the Bhote Koshi river and it is believed that the downstream soon swelled from seven to nine meters in just thirty minutes. What also accelerated the fury of the river is the topography of the place which has deep valleys surrounded by high peaks on either sides. The resulting forward rush of the river simply buried every living and non living thing in its way.
Rescue operations are still on as we write this report. While Nepal has confirmed 579 dead and 977 missing, Tibet has put the figure at 5 dead and 588 still missing. Any chance of survivors after more than 60 hours looks a remote possibility adding to the sheer magnitude of this tragedy.
