Nepal Asked China for Glacier Warnings Months Before Catastrophic Flood

Nepal had asked China for greater access to information on glacier risks, water levels and other hazards months before a devastating flood and mudslide struck the Himalayan region, according to Reuters.

Nepali and Chinese officials met in Kathmandu on May 27 to discuss cooperation on monitoring floods, weather and glacier-related dangers. Nepal requested stronger systems for sharing information about glacial lakes, landslides and other potential threats.

However, two Nepali officials said they did not receive as much information as they had hoped for after the meeting. They said limited data sharing could make it more difficult to anticipate and prepare for major disasters.

China rejected suggestions that it had failed to provide timely warnings, saying its teams had shared important information with Nepal.

Twelve days before the disaster, China's World Meteorological Centre warned Nepali officials that heavy rainfall was expected between August 14 and 19 and highlighted the possibility of landslides and flash floods.

The catastrophe occurred on Wednesday when a glacier collapse triggered a massive surge of water, mud and rocks along a Himalayan valley near the Nepal-China border. The disaster has killed nearly 800 people in Nepal and China and left more than 3,000 missing, according to the latest figures cited by Reuters.

The flood destroyed monitoring stations, bridges and sections of highway and damaged Nepal's power-generation capacity. Officials said the flood travelled about 168 kilometres downstream from the border.

Nepal's hydrologists said some monitoring equipment stopped transmitting data during the disaster, making it harder to track the flood as it moved downstream.

Climate change is increasing risks in the Hindu Kush Himalayas, where melting glaciers, changing snowfall patterns and glacial lake hazards threaten communities across the region.

Nepal now plans to seek a formal data-sharing agreement with China similar to its existing arrangement with India. Officials want more frequent information on rainfall, river levels, avalanches and glacier-related hazards.

One Nepali official said the country hopes to receive data as frequently as every 10 minutes so authorities can issue earlier warnings and save lives.

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