At least 14 people have died and 120 are missing after a Himalayan lake overflowed in the Indian state of Sikkim. Soldiers stationed at the border are particularly affected. Wednesday’s torrential rains quickly destroyed fourteen bridges and caused damage in four districts of the region bordering China and Nepal.
This damage makes the rescue even more difficult, without forgetting that the army itself, stationed in the most dangerous reaches, is the first victim of the disaster.
The Lhonak glacial lake at the foot of Kanchenjanga (the third highest peak in the world) has lost two-thirds of its surface area since Wednesday due to the sudden overflow. No fewer than 22,000 people were affected.
“The search operations are being carried out amid incessant rain, fast-flowing water in the Tista River and roads and bridges washed away in many places,” a defense spokesman said.
The ancient kingdom of Sikkim, in which Nepalis currently make up the majority, was annexed by India in a controversial referendum in the mid-1970s and became the smallest of its states.
The weather department warned of landslides and flight disruptions as more rains are expected in some parts of Sikkim and neighboring states in the next two days. Sikkim was cut off from Siliguri in West Bengal, its natural gateway to the rest of India, via Darjiling when the main road collapsed.
The 120 missing include 22 soldiers – after the rescue of one soldier – who were trapped by the flooding of the Tista River near the town of Singtam.
River flooding – up to six meters high – and the collapse of bridges and roads have left tens of thousands of people cut off. Climate change and global warming have increased the frequency of such overflows in glacial lakes, experts say.