Kathmandu [Nepal], August 28 (ANI): The death toll due to the devastating flash flood in Nepal's Rasuwa district rose to 469 on Friday, while 1,545 people were injured and rescued, Nepal Police said. According to Nepal Police, the Chitwan district recorded the highest death toll with 178 bodies recovered, followed by 110 in NP East, 44 in Gorkha, 37 in Nuwakot, 33 in Dhading, 28 in Tanahun, 27 in NP West and 12 in Rasuwa.
Madhav Prasad Chaulagain, Former Nepal Forest & Environment Minister says the scale of the disaster is unprecedented and a civilization living on the riverbank has been swept away.
"This kind of scale of disaster is purely unprecedented and we had never imagined it could be that level of big. Even if we compare it with the 2015 earthquake, I think it's even more disastrous than that time. That's how we are feeling in Nepal. In terms of the damage it created, the havoc it created, the loss of life is uncountable at so many challenges there. So, we, through this level of disaster, a civilization that flourished on that riverbank is swiped away in a moment's notice. It's that level of big and we never imagined even our preparedness, our knowledge, local level of knowledge, we had never thought of this scale, that level of big we are witnessing here," he told ANI in an interview from Kathmandu.
According to experts he initial assessment of the cause of the massive deluge points to a glacial collapse or ice block avalanche. Madhav Prasad says the disaster should be viewed through the lens of climate change and the rising temperature and increasing instability of the Himalayan ecosystem is a cause for worry.
"After getting some recent satellite imagery and some analytics, some experts are providing more realistic information that yes, it is primarily because of the icefall melting, the big mass of icefall which was collapsed and that caused the wave of the glacier lake and that ultimately because of the force, this mass created the sedimentation flow and which was much more disastrous than the freshwater. Ultimately it is actually linked with the glacier melting which is a mountain climate condition, climate change condition. And apparently, it is not by the people who are residing in that area and they are just becoming the victim of the global this emissions or temperature, the climate issues," he said.
Nepal however continues to battle the crisis with the Chinese side now alerting them the the threat of a fresh flood risk from a barrier lake near the Nepal-Tibet border. China warned that millions of cubic metres of additional water could enter the newly formed lake over the next three days and increase the danger of a sudden breach. Madhav Prasad says the need of the hour is better coordination between Nepal, China and India as the Hindu Kush Himalayan range are a ticking time bomb.
"This morning there are some images, some messages coming from that site that again the water, the icefall, this reservation on the dam, the glacier dam site is increasing. It may explode any time and now they have provided like 72 hours alert that it may explode again within 72 hours. That's why the alerts have been sent out to the downstream settlements, there are six districts until the Indian border and there might be many affected zones further also. The local authorities have asked people to like move up in the hill part to prevent themselves... Something on a smaller scale of the glacier gulf outburst happened last year, which was actually the early sign. Because of that, the Tibetan side, the Chinese authorities and Nepal agreed to exchange some information... But it needs to be strengthened and it's not just only like two countries, Nepal, India, and China should work together because the Hindu Kush Himalayan range and glaciers which we share are a ticking out bomb. And now more and more they are becoming a threat to the downstream," he said.
Meanwhile, the Government of Nepal has dispatched NPR 25 million in cash for relief, including NPR 10 million each for Rasuwa and Nuwakot and NPR 5 million for Dhading. The United States and the World Health Organization (WHO) have extended support and expressed solidarity with Nepal following devastating flash floods and mudslides, with Washington announcing USD 5,00,000 in assistance and the WHO dispatching emergency medical supplies. (ANI)
"Nepal-China-India need to strengthen coordination": Former Nepal Environment Minister Madhav Prasad calls for better communication to meet climate change challenge in region
