The devastating burst of a glacial lake in India has been captured on video and via shocking satellite images.
So far, at least 14 people have been confirmed dead and over a hundred remain missing in Sikkim in northeastern India, since Lhonak Lake burst on Wednesday, The Guardian reported.
Around 22,000 people living in the area have been severely affected. The burst was caused by an onslaught of heavy rain in the region which also triggered flash floods in the area.
The images, posted by the Indian Space Research Organisation, show Lhonak Lake before and after the catastrophic event. The lake appears vastly different in the images, with the volume of water significantly reduced following the burst.
A video also shows the fast-flowing water following the breach in Northern Sikkim.
The Chungthang dam surrounding the lake partially collapsed, causing around 105 hectares of South Lhonak Lake to empty following the cloudburst, the Indian Space Research reported with satellite imagery.
"This shift toward increased rainfall has profound implications. Rainfall can trigger floods in an instant, as opposed to the gradual release of water from snow melt, heightening the risk of glacier lake breaches," Mohammed Ombadi, an assistant professor at the Department of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering at the University of Michigan told Newsweek.
"Additionally, intense rainfall elevates the risk of landslides, with displaced rocks and debris potentially causing lake breaches as well," he said. "The Lhonak Lake disaster serves as a poignant reminder of just how vulnerable glacier lakes are to the compounding hazards brought on by climate change. It underscores the urgent need for proactive climate change adaptation measures."
The lake's total area has now reduced to 60 hectares, an official at the Central Water Commission told the Press Trust of India.
"The search operations are being undertaken under conditions of incessant rains, fast-flowing water in Teesta River, roads and bridges washed away at many places," a spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence said on Twitter, now known as X.
Rescue operations are underway, according to authorities who said it has been made tricky by rainfall continuing to descend on the region.
This Himalayan region is particularly susceptible to severe weather disasters. Following this most recent disaster, scientists are now looking into the possibility that it was caused by a recent earthquake that rumbled neighboring Nepal, PTI reported.
Four earthquakes, including one of 6.2 magnitude, shook Nepal and parts of north India on Tuesday.
Lhonak Lake was already in a vulnerable state, with officials having predicted that a burst was likely. This has led scientists to believe that the earthquake may have contributed to the burst, PTI reported. Officials said this was difficult to determine, however.
While heavy rain does not usually cause such severe results, the region experienced five times the amount of usual rainfall prior to the burst.
This region has already experienced catastrophic events due to severe weather this year. The Guardian reported that the recent monsoon in the state of Himachal Pradesh caused 250 deaths and some devastating landslides.
Severe weather events such as this are becoming more commonplace in South Asia. Weather patterns are becoming increasingly difficult to predict. Scientists believe that climate change is contributing to this, making monsoons and seasonal rainfall more erratic, according to a study by Nature.
Update 10/06/23, 04:33 a.m. ET: This story has been updated with comment from Professor Mohammed Ombadi.
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Robyn White is a Newsweek Nature Reporter based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on wildlife, science and the ... Read more
