The death toll in India from a rapid flood caused by the rupture of a Himalayan glacier rose to at least 26 on Monday, while rescuers continue to search for some 200 missing people, according to officials.
The broken piece of the Nanda Devi glacier sent a wall of water and debris falling down a valley in the early hours of Sunday, breaking two dams and destroying bridges and roads when it hit two hydropower plants.
A team of scientists flew to the region on Monday to find out what caused the disaster, and some experts have already blamed global warming.
Whatever the cause, “everything was razed: people, livestock and trees,” said Sangram Singh Rawat, a former member of the Raini village council, the site closest to one of the damaged hydroelectric plants.
Workers have recovered at least 26 bodies. More than 2,000 military, paramilitary groups and police continued to search and rescue en masse about 200 people still missing.
Most of the missing were workers at the two power plants, and 37 are known to have been trapped inside a 1.5-kilometer tunnel that was filled with mud and rocks.
“The tunnel is full of rubbish, which has come from the river. We are using machines to pave the way, ”said H. Gurung, a senior official in the Indo-Tibetan border paramilitary police.
Floodwaters also damaged homes, but it was unclear how many residents had died or disappeared. Government officials threw packages of food and medicine at at least two villages affected by the floods.
While scientists are examining the cause of the glacier rupture, some have noted that last week it snowed heavily in the Nanda Devi area, which possibly caused an avalanche when it began to melt.
Others already blame global warming, observing global melting and the rupture of the world’s glaciers.
“This is very similar to a climate change event, as glaciers are melting due to global warming,” said Anjal Prakash, research director and adjunct professor at the Indian School of Business.
The disaster also raises questions about the strength of the dams.
“The dams are supposed to support much more force. It wasn’t a monsoon flood, it was much smaller, ”said Himanshu Thakkar, coordinator of the South Asian Dam, River and People Network.
With publishing cables