China has sounded a Level-IV alert following the devastating flash floods at the Tibet-Nepal border, warning that a newly formed barrier lake at the confluence of two rivers faces a high risk of breaching and flooding downstream areas.
BEIJING — China has sounded a Level-IV alert following the devastating flash floods at the Tibet-Nepal border, warning that a newly formed barrier lake at the confluence of two rivers faces a high risk of breaching and flooding downstream areas.
China's Ministry of Water Resources on Thursday night sounded an emergency in the Tibet Autonomous Region, cautioning of a threat posed by the barrier lake, which formed near the confluence of Chhochen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo rivers.
These rivers originate in Tibet and flow into Nepal as part of the Bhote Koshi river system.
China’s emergency response system for natural disasters has four levels, with Level-I being the highest and Level IV the lowest.
The lake has accumulated an estimated two million cubic metres of water as of Thursday morning, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
According to forecasts, inflows into the lake could reach about three million cubic metres over the next three days amid continued rainfall, increasing the risk of a breach that could send floodwaters downstream and potentially cause further damage in areas including Gyirong Port at the China-Nepal border and elsewhere downstream.
In response, the ministry has instructed local authorities to closely monitor the barrier lake and rainfall, strengthen forecasting and risk assessments, and accurately identify people living in areas that could be affected downstream, it said.
China, meanwhile, has deployed satellites and drones to aid the rescue efforts in the flash floods-hit area near the Nepal border in Tibet.
The China National Space Administration (CNSA) said it has deployed satellite resources to conduct emergency imaging of the affected area and retrieve historical imagery.
So far, it has delivered five pre-disaster images and 10 post-disaster images to relevant emergency response and disaster relief departments, providing satellite data support for disaster assessment and mitigation efforts.
China has also deployed its unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) Wing Loong, equipped with high-definition cameras, to the region for comprehensive reconnaissance of the area, the Xinhua report said.
Meanwhile, rescue personnel have been using small UAVs for carrying out their operations.
Using the high-definition cameras, the UAVs will help construct 3D real-scene models of the flash floods-hit area, providing data support for the rescue command centre to understand the overall situation and mark priority search zones, the report said.
Additionally, rescue personnel have been utilising UAVs' thermal imaging equipment to capture human heat-source signals to identify the locations of missing persons in vegetated terrains and mud-covered zones, the report said.
According to China, 558 people, including many foreign tourists, went missing in the flash floods that struck Gyirong Port in Gyirong County near the Tibet-Nepal border in Tibet on August 26.
However, rescue work has been hampered by the huge barrier lake, which Chinese officials believe might cause a massive secondary disaster.
An eight-member advance team from China Anneng, a state-owned engineering and rescue enterprise, arrived in Gyirong County on Thursday with communications and detection equipment to collect key data and support efforts to address an upstream blockage or barrier lake, which is a top priority, Xinhua reported.
Only after the risk posed by the blockage or the barrier lake is addressed can the debris accumulated about three-kilometre upstream of the port be safely cleared, according to rescue personnel at the site, the report said.
Firefighters have been using drones to mark points around the lake's perimeter, allowing its surface area to be calculated from the coordinates.
Drone footage showed that the lake's water level had risen compared with Wednesday night.
On Thursday, Chinese Premier Li Qiang visited the disaster-hit area along with a group of senior officials from relevant departments to assess the damage.
The officials will supervise rescue and relief operations, and visit those affected by the disaster.
A directing group of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Western Theatre Command, which looks after the India-China border in Tibet, was dispatched to the affected area on Thursday to coordinate joint rescue operations by military personnel in Gyirong County.