The secondary disaster threat that had been raised after the massive floods and landslides that struck the China-Nepal border area has eased.
Summing up reports by major outlets including Reuters on the 29th (local time), China's Ministry of Water Resources said the lake that had formed in the Phurephu Xiangpo River had shrunk to about 99,000 square meters (the size of 14 soccer fields) as of the morning of the 29th. As the water pooled in the giant lake created by glacier collapse debris drained out, concerns that it could inundate downstream areas have diminished. Rescue operations, which had been temporarily halted due to the risk of flooding, are moving to resume with safety ensured.
Earlier, on the 26th, the floods and landslides triggered by the glacier collapse swept over key infrastructure such as bridges and power plants, killing at least 669 people in Nepal and seven in Tibet. The number of people unaccounted for stands at 2,980, including 2,426 missing in Nepal and 554 near Gyirong County in Tibet.
While the water level of the lake that posed the greatest threat is dropping, authorities are closely watching another large lake that formed beneath the collapsed glacier. Chen Hongqi, chief engineer at the Geological Disaster Technology Guidance Center of China's Ministry of Natural Resources, said, "We estimate its area to be over 120,000 square meters, but we do not know the depth at this time." A Nepal Disaster Management Agency official also warned that the flood risk will persist until the water drains completely from both lakes. Since the 27th, Chinese authorities have been monitoring the area around the lakes around the clock using radar and drones. If any abnormal signs appear at the lakes, they have also put in place a system to issue an alert 30 minutes in advance so rescue workers can evacuate.
China's rescue teams arrived at the disaster site, the Gyirong border checkpoint, on the afternoon of the 28th, but road cutoffs and even a collapse of communications networks hampered relief efforts. Chinese media said disaster authorities are fighting to reopen the key road leading to the border facilities. About 1,000 people, including residents of villages near the disaster site, construction workers, and tourists, evacuated to safe areas.