(Rescuers Inspect a Residential Building Damaged by The Flash Floods. Photo by Al Jazeera English)
More than 1,100 people have died and nearly 4,000 are missing after flash floods swept through the Himalayan region of Nepal and Tibet last week.
The disaster started when a glacier collapsed on August 26, sending massive waves of water, mud and rocks through mountain communities.
At least 1,114 people d!ed in Nepal alone, while Tibet reported 16 d£aths and 546 people missing.
The UN says the floods left behind more than 2.2 million tonnes of debris scattered across the affected areas.
The damage to infrastructure is severe. Eleven hydropower stations and a solar plant that powered communities have stopped working.
Another 15 power projects still under construction, which would have provided 470 megawatts of electricity, were destroyed.
About 600 workers are feared trapped, some believed stuck in tunnels beneath the hydropower stations.
Search and rescue teams have so far pulled more than 270 workers from the tunnels.
International help is arriving to assist with the recovery. Experts from South Korea, China, India and Singapore are being flown in to help find survivors and recover bodies.
Forensic specialists are also coming because identifying the d£ad has become extremely difficult given the scale of d£aths and the condition of the remains.
Some families have already held funerals without their missing relatives’ bodies, believing it necessary to free their spirits.
Scientists warned years ago that this could happen.
In 2020, a study identified 47 potentially dangerous glacial lakes in Nepal, India and China, with 31 considered extremely risky. Experts called for better monitoring and early warning systems, but the warnings went unheeded.
Climate change is making things worse.
Warming temperatures are causing glaciers to shrink and break apart, creating new lakes and expanding existing ones.
This raises the risk of sudden, massive floods that can sweep through valleys below.
Experts say the danger will remain long-term, meaning some villages may never be safe to rebuild in.
Nepal’s foreign minister has demanded that countries responsible for global warming pay compensation.
He said Nepal produces almost no greenhouse gases yet is paying the ultimate price.
He named China, the United States and India as the world’s top three polluters and said they have a duty to help vulnerable nations like Nepal.
The government has formally sent a compensation claim letter to international partners.
