Chinese rescue teams have advanced toward the center of a massive mudslide site near the Tibet-Nepal border, where hundreds remain missing following a glacier collapse earlier this week. The disaster occurred on Wednesday near the border town of Gyirong in Tibet, unleashing a destructive torrent of rock, ice, mud, and debris that has claimed at least seven lives and left 554 people unaccounted for, according to figures released by Chinese state media.
By Saturday, more than 500 rescue workers had reached the most severely affected area, amid challenging conditions that include ongoing rain, difficult terrain, and blocked access routes. Authorities have deployed helicopters, inflatable boats, and heavy machinery to support search efforts, while engineers monitor the site, using drones and radar to assess risks and maintain surveillance around hazardous areas.
A significant concern for rescue teams has been a newly formed glacial lake created by the debris blocking river channels. Satellite imagery from Thursday through Saturday showed the lake, located at the confluence of rivers straddling the Tibet-Nepal border, gradually draining. The lake's surface area shrank from more than 120,000 square meters to approximately 99,000 square meters by early Saturday afternoon, according to China’s Ministry of Water Resources. Officials said the lake is discharging naturally and is "essentially drained," alleviating fears of an immediate flood threat.
Experts have cautioned that secondary disasters remain a possibility until all glacial lakes in the area have fully drained. A senior engineer from China’s Ministry of Natural Resources highlighted another larger, yet less understood, lake at the base of the glacier collapse, whose depth has yet to be determined. Nepalese disaster authorities also flagged ongoing flood risks downstream as long as these water bodies persist.
Search and rescue operations were briefly suspended due to an overflow of the lake on Friday but resumed after authorities deemed the situation manageable. The Water Resources Ministry has implemented alert systems designed to provide early warnings if the dammed lake shows signs of sudden outflow, allowing rescuers to evacuate promptly.
The U.S. Geological Survey has identified the event as a glacial collapse, with climate change-linked glacier melting cited by experts as a contributing factor increasing the likelihood of similar disasters worldwide. Rescue teams continue to face logistical challenges exacerbated by heavy rain forecast through Sunday, complicating access to affected areas.
As of Saturday, a total of 2,141 rescuers were deployed near Gyirong, with 499 Chinese citizens and 555 foreign nationals evacuated from the disaster zone. Chinese officials reported that 260 foreigners remain missing in Tibet following the collapse. Authorities continue to coordinate efforts amid ongoing weather challenges to locate survivors and mitigate further risks in the region.