The extraordinary flood on Wednesday in the Himalayas left a trail of 392 dead so far, and more than 1,400 missing. The toll becomes more tragic as Nepal shakes off the mud and China supplies data sparingly. Also explanations.
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According to geologist and rector Xu Qiang, there was no earthquake, but the tremor recorded was the result of the massive rock and ice landslide itself, at more than 5,000 meters altitude. This mass “of tens of millions of cubic meters” rushed over a watercourse and gained speed, becoming the unstoppable mud flood that swept the mountain pass between the two countries, at 1,800 meters, and continued descending apocalyptically into Nepal.
Along the way it left 558 missing in Tibet, of whom 260 are foreigners. These add to the more than seven hundred missing on the Nepalese side, among whom there are 517 foreigners.
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In both cases, the largest group of foreigners by far are pilgrims of Indian origin, who were heading to Lake Manasarovar, sacred to Hindus and Buddhists. However, there are missing persons from about thirty nationalities. Among them four Spaniards – according to the Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares – as well as 53 Ukrainian tourists, 65 Americans, 51 Malaysians, 34 Australians, and 33 British, among others. Although yesterday it was learned that, after India (179), China takes the lead, with nearly a hundred missing on Nepalese soil.
Among the missing are four Spaniards, according to Foreign Minister Albares
Nepal woke up yesterday with many villages half-buried under the mud. Although the official death toll, according to the police, is 359, there are about 800 people who have been impossible to contact, so the final count could multiply. Among them, there is a disproportionate number of pilgrims and tourists, hydroelectric plant workers, and security forces, as it is the border. However, helicopters did not stop rescuing people all day. According to the police, 445 in the last hours, of whom 27 would be foreigners. There is no time to lose because experts point out the possibility that debris dragged by the current could cause new shocks. That is why China evacuated yesterday the 555 tourists remaining in the Tibetan county of Gyirong, where the disaster-stricken border post is located.
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Beijing, in any case, only found three bodies on Chinese territory, although many more could emerge downstream, in Nepal. The Himalayan republic faces its worst disaster since the 2015 earthquake, which left 9,000 dead. As then, many survivors, surely thousands, have lost their homes. The violence of the current – a real wall of water more than ten meters high – not only dragged hundreds of people along its passage through the narrow Trishuli basin, but also knocked down multi-story buildings like dominoes and took down 80 bridges (35 for vehicles) and 40 kilometers of roads.
Not even the imposing Chinese customs of Gyirong, in front of which groups of Hindu pilgrims gathered, was spared from being engulfed by the tremendous onslaught of the waters. Although much worse was the fate of Rasuwagadhi, right opposite, and other villages on the Nepalese side, with a much higher population density. This is the main border crossing between China and Nepal, three or four hours from Kathmandu. Hence dozens of victims are customs officers or truck drivers. And hence the human tragedy must be added to the economic impact, in one of the poorest countries in Asia, with the aggravation that several hydroelectric plants have been destroyed.
There was no earthquake, but a rock and ice landslide, according to geologist Xu Qiang
The high season for Hindu pilgrimages, which coincides with the low season for mountaineering – due to the monsoon – determined the profile of many of the victims. Among them, devotees from India or Indians emigrated to North America or the United Kingdom, arriving through travel agencies.
But not all will be unanswered prayers. After midday, rescuers reported the finding alive of nearly a hundred Hindu pilgrims who had remained isolated.
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