Nearly 20 dead, 100 missing in India flooding after heavy rain causes glacial lake to burst
Heavy rains over the mountains of northern India, bordered by Nepal, China and Bangladesh caused a glacial lake to burst its earthen banks and touched off a dam collapse.
Bridge demolished by flooding from overflowing glacial lake in India
This was just one of the 14 bridges damaged Thursday in Sikkim, India after days of heavy rain caused glacial Lake Lhonak to overflow.
SIKKIM, India – At least 18 people were killed and nearly 100 are still missing, including 23 members of the military, after heavy rains triggered a dam break in the Himalayas of northern India, according to local media and official statements.
"Cloud burst induced water surge around Lhonak area led to flash floods in the low-lying areas of Teesta basin causing rise of water levels with very high velocities downstream with the States of Sikkim and West Bengal in the early hours of 4th October 2023," the Chief Secretary of the Government of Sikkim said in a statement.
Excavators must remove the inches of silt covering downtowns. The silt rushed into people's homes and shops too. Look at the mud covering the ground floor of the street showing the high water mark.
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"This has caused extensive damages to life and property including the breakdown of road networks and communication," the statement continued.
An official told Reuters that 14 bridges were washed away, which has slowed search, recovery and aid delivery in the region. Continued rain in lower elevations and snow in higher elevations is also hampering rescue efforts. Air rescue and surveillance have been grounded. At least 2,500 tourists are trapped.
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Flash flooding washed a bridge in Muguthang, India down river. This official points out the piers that used to anchor the bridge on either side.
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The director of the state's Disaster Management Authority called the situation, "slightly grim."
Heavy rain, lake outburst and collapsed dam were deadly results
India's weather department stated that the area has received 4 inches of rain since Oct. 1 – more than twice the average amount. Officials told Reuters that the flooding was worse than the October 1968 flooding, which killed 1,000 people.
A glacier atop the third-highest peak in the world also feeds Lhonak Lake. The lake sits at 17,000 feet. Officials said in a statement that the first surge of water along the river that flows from the lake was 62 feet above the maximum water level at one measurement site at 1:30 a.m. local time. An official told Wion News that the torrent rushed at 50 feet per second or 34 mph down river and was past a measuring site where it was recorded at 15 feet higher than the danger level.
The authority stated that more than half the lake has drained, evidenced by satellite images.
Towns people crowded the shovel of this earthmover as it was the only way to escape.
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Wion reported that the dam from the largest hydropower project in the state failed, resulting in a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF).
The state opened 18 relief camps for the 22,000 residents impacted. Neighboring Bangladesh is also watching for flooding from upriver.
The flood rushed through towns in the early morning. One social media post said, "The water washed people away in their beds."
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Military personal dig out an army vehicle from feet of mud while searching for 17 missing of their own.
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The flash flood covered the first floors of some buildings in silt. The force collapsed homes and compromised the integrity of the ones left standing. Cars were swamped and washed away. The state is cutoff from the rest of India because the main highway collapsed.
Glacial Lake Outburst Flooding a worldwide problem
A similar GLOF in 2013 killed thousands in a nearby state in India.
Alaska was recently hit by a GLOF.
A study in the journal Nature Communications found that 15 million people worldwide are in danger from this type of flooding.