Himalayan glacier breaks in India, hitting dams and killing 14, with 170 missing
- A portion of the Nanda Devi glacier broke off in Tapovan area of the northern state of Uttarakhand, damaging two hydropower plants
- Officials said when the glacier broke it sent water trapped behind it as well as mud and other debris surging down the mountain
Indian authorities launched a search operation on Sunday after part of a mountain glacier broke, sending a massive flood of water and debris slamming into two dams and damaging a number of homes. At least 14 people were killed and 170 remain missing.
The flood was caused when a portion of Nanda Devi glacier broke off in Tapovan area of the northern state of Uttarakhand on Sunday morning. A video shared by officials and taken from the side of steep hillside shows a wall of water surging into one of the dams and breaking it into pieces with little resistance before continuing to roar downstream.
The Rishiganga hydropower plant was destroyed, while the Dhauliganga hydropower was damaged, said Vivek Pandey, a spokesman for paramilitary Indo Tibetan Border Police. Both are on the Alaknanda River, which flows from the Himalayan mountains to the Ganges River.
Ravi Bejaria, a government spokesman, said some houses were also damaged in the flooding.
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Himalayan glacier breaks in northern India, leaving at least 170 missing in deadly floods
Officials said when the glacier broke it sent water trapped behind it as well as mud and other debris surging down the mountain and into other bodies of water. An advisory was issued urging people living on the banks of the Alaknanda River to move to safer places immediately.
“Everything was swept away, people, cattle and trees,” Sangram Singh Rawat, a former village council member of Raini, the site closest to the glacier, told local media.