China on Friday suspended rescue operations in Tibet due to the heightened risk of fresh flooding, with hundreds of people still missing two days after a deadly mudslide near the China-Nepal border, according to AFP.
The decision comes as a lake formed by massive deposits of mud and debris from Wednesday’s landslide began overflowing toward areas where rescue teams had been operating, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
“All rescue teams have been ordered to stand by in place and wait for further instructions,” CCTV said, as quolted by AFP adding that emergency personnel who had earlier reached the affected area were instructed to retreat by one kilometre (0.6 miles).
The mudslide struck the border town of Gyirong in Tibet on Wednesday, triggering large accumulations of debris that blocked water flow and created a rapidly expanding lake. Authorities have reported hundreds of people missing following the disaster.
According to CCTV, continued rainfall is expected to push water levels in the lake higher over the next three days, with levels projected to peak around September 1.
The rising water has raised concerns about the stability of the natural debris dam. State news agency Xinhua reported late Thursday that the situation has increased “the risk of a breach that could send floodwaters downstream and potentially cause further damage in areas including Gyirong Port and elsewhere downstream.”
China’s Level IV Alert For Flash Floods
Earlier China had sounded a Level-IV alert following the devastating flash floods at the Tibet-Nepal border, warning that a newly formed barrier lake at the confluence of two rivers faces a high risk of breaching and flooding downstream areas.
China’s Ministry of Water Resources on Thursday night sounded an emergency in the Tibet Autonomous Region, cautioning of a threat posed by the barrier lake, which formed near the confluence of Chhochen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo rivers.
These rivers originate in Tibet and flow into Nepal as part of the Bhote Koshi river system. China’s emergency response system for natural disasters has four levels, with Level-I being the highest and Level IV the lowest. The lake has accumulated an estimated two million cubic metres of water as of Thursday morning, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
According to China, 558 people, including many foreign tourists, went missing in the flash floods that struck Gyirong Port in Gyirong County near the Tibet-Nepal border in Tibet on August 26.
(with inputs from PTI)
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