A devastating mudslide, triggered by a glacier collapse in Nepal, struck China's main overland gateway to Nepal, the Gyirong border port in the Xizang (Tibet) autonomous region, on Wednesday morning. The disaster has resulted in three confirmed fatalities and 558 people remaining missing, including 260 foreign nationals. The mudslide, which traveled at approximately 50 meters per second and covered an impact stretch of over 20 kilometers, left virtually no time for warning and caused widespread destruction to infrastructure, including roads, communications, and power supplies.
Chinese President Xi Jinping ordered an all-out effort for search and rescue, and Premier Li Qiang visited the disaster site on Thursday to oversee relief operations. Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing is also leading a team of officials. The Xizang regional government activated its highest-level emergency response, dispatching 792 personnel and 152 vehicles, along with 431 firefighters, rescue dogs, life scanners, and speedboats. The Chinese People's Liberation Army Western Theater Command sent over 500 personnel, four helicopters, and multiple drones. Elite fire and rescue teams from the Ministry of Emergency Management and the National Fire and Rescue Administration deployed more than 500 sets of equipment and four search-and-rescue dogs. China Anneng Construction Group dispatched 310 technical experts and rescuers, including geologists and engineers, to assist with relief efforts and restore damaged infrastructure. The Red Cross Society of China sent a working group and 2,500 relief items, including tents and family kits. Search and rescue operations are challenged by the complex terrain and a newly formed barrier lake containing an estimated 2 million cubic meters of water, with an additional 3 million cubic meters expected to flow in, posing a high risk of breach.
International organizations have also pledged support. The US Department of State is dispatching a disaster response adviser and providing $500,000 in emergency aid. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs allocated $2 million from its Global Emergency Fund CERF for Nepal relief efforts. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese noted the challenges in gathering information due to limited infrastructure, and Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced $3.6 million in aid to communities along the Nepal-China border, along with sending extra consular staff to the area.
Roads leading to the Gyirong port were cut off, and communications and power supplies were disrupted. As of Thursday, about 800 meters of a 3-kilometer road section to the port had been cleared. The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Emergency Management allocated 120 million yuan (about $17.69 million USD) in central natural disaster relief funds, and the National Development and Reform Commission earmarked 100 million yuan for post-disaster recovery and reconstruction.
