RASUWA, NEPAL | A glacier collapse in the Himalayas likely triggered the catastrophic flash floods that devastated communities along the Nepal-China border, while scientists say climate change may have increased the instability of the ice and surrounding mountain slopes.
The disaster began on August 26 when a large section of glacier reportedly broke away from the northern slopes of Langtang Lirung and plunged into a river system near the border. Satellite imagery reviewed by Reuters showed evidence of a substantial collapse, with ice, rock and sediment rushing into the Lhende Khola river. The resulting debris flow sent a powerful surge downstream through Tibet and Nepal.
The U.S. Geological Survey said an earthquake initially reported as magnitude 4.4 was actually seismic energy generated by the collapse and subsequent debris flow, rather than the cause of the disaster. Scientists continue to investigate what ultimately destabilized the glacier.
As of Thursday, the disaster had killed hundreds and left more than 1,000 people missing across Nepal and Tibet, with foreign tourists and pilgrims among those unaccounted for. The flooding also destroyed homes, roads, bridges and power facilities, while severely damaging infrastructure around Gyirong Port, an important trade crossing between China and Nepal.
Experts caution that climate change should not be described as the sole immediate cause. However, warmer temperatures can accelerate glacier melt, alter freezing and thawing cycles and weaken the ice and rock that hold steep Himalayan slopes together.
Simon Cox, chief scientist at Earth Sciences New Zealand, told Reuters that climate change is creating conditions that can destabilize high-mountain rock and ice, potentially making cascading disasters more frequent. Farooq Azam, a senior cryosphere specialist at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, said heavy snowmelt combined with seismic activity may have contributed to the initial ice-rock avalanche.
The long-term trend is already evident. The United Nations reported in 2023 that Nepal had lost nearly one-third of its mountain ice cover in just over three decades, while the rate of glacier loss accelerated by about 65 percent during the decade preceding 2023.
The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development has warned that the Hindu Kush Himalaya is experiencing rapid changes in glaciers, snow and permafrost, increasing the risk of cascading hazards such as glacial floods, avalanches, landslides and debris flows. The region provides water for more than two billion people downstream.
The Nepal disaster is the latest in a series of severe Himalayan events. In 2024, a glacial lake outburst devastated Thame in Nepal’s Everest region, while a 2023 glacial lake outburst in India’s Sikkim killed 179 people. A 2021 flash flood in Uttarakhand, India, also killed more than 200 people and destroyed two hydroelectric projects.
Scientists say the latest catastrophe illustrates the growing danger of compound events, in which climate-driven glacier loss, unstable mountain terrain, extreme weather and seismic activity can interact to produce disasters far more destructive than any single hazard alone.
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Si Venus L Peñaflor ay naging editor-in-chief ng Newsworld, isang lokal na pahayagan ng Laguna. Publisher din siya ng Daystar Gazette at Tutubi News Magazine. Siya ay isa ring pintor at doll face designer ng Ninay Dolls, ang unang Manikang Pilipino. Kasali siya sa DesignCrowd sa rank na #305 sa 640,000 graphic designers sa buong daigdig. Kasama din siya sa unang Local TV Broadcast sa Laguna na Beyond Manila. Aktibong kasapi siya ng San Pablo Jaycees Senate bilang isang JCI Senator.
- Venus L Peñaflor
- Venus L Peñaflor
- Venus L Peñaflor
- Venus L Peñaflor
