2023-10-06 08:03:04
NEW DELHI (AP) — The hydroelectric dam in the northeastern Indian Himalayas that caused a flood of freezing water that inundated mountain villages and left 31 dead had been identified as dangerous by state officials, researchers and environmental activists years before the disaster. .
The flooding began shortly after midnight on Wednesday, when a high mountain glacial lake overflowed after heavy rain. Its waters cracked the concrete walls of the largest dam in the state of Sikkim and fell on towns in the Lachan Valley, carrying away people, homes, roads and bridges.
It was the latest fatal flood recorded in northeast India in a year of unusually heavy monsoon rainfall. About 50 people were killed by flash floods and landslides in neighboring Himachal Pradesh state in August, and record rains in the north of the country claimed the lives of more than 100 people in two weeks in July.
The design and location of the six-year-old dam has sparked controversy since its construction as part of India’s initiative to increase its hydroelectric power. Local activists argued that extreme weather events caused by climate change make building reservoirs in the Himalayas too dangerous, and warned that the infrastructure design did not include sufficient safety measures.
A report prepared by the Sikkim State Disaster Management Agency in 2019 identified the lake for which the dam was built as “highly vulnerable” to floods that could cause significant personal and property damage in lower areas, warning of the danger of flooding. sudden storms that could overwhelm the walls.
The infrastructure operator and local agencies responsible for its security did not respond to requests for comment on Friday.
The level of Lake Lhonak has risen rapidly in recent years as the glaciers that feed it melt faster due to climate change. A study carried out in 2021 by researchers from India, the United States and Switzerland warned that rising water and the steep slopes surrounding the lake increased the likelihood of catastrophic flooding.
The Teesta 3 hydroelectric project, built on the Teesta River, took nine years to build and cost $1.5 billion. It could produce 1,200 megawatts of electricity — enough to power 1.5 million Indian homes — and began operating in 2017.
“Despite being the largest project in the state, no early warning systems were installed even though glacier outburst was a known risk,” said Himanshu Thakkar of the NGO South Asian Network for Rivers, Dams and People.
India’s National Disaster Management Agency explained in a statement on Friday that it plans to install real-time early warning systems in most of the 56 glacial lakes known to be at risk in the country.
The cause of the breach in the dam wall on Wednesday was unclear.
Both experts and various government reports pointed to the intense and sudden rains recorded in the area and a 6.2 magnitude earthquake that shook neighboring Nepal the day before.
More than 2,000 people were rescued after Wednesday’s floods, the Sikkim state disaster management agency said in a statement, adding that regional authorities set up 26 camps for the more than 22,000 affected people.
Rescuers were searching for about 100 people still missing, including 22 soldiers, on Thursday, according to the state government.
Eleven bridges in the Lachan Valley were washed away, which also affected pipelines and damaged or destroyed more than 270 homes in four districts, officials said.
Several towns in the Teesta basin, including Dikchu and Rangpo, were flooded and schools in four districts will remain closed until Sunday, according to the state education department.
The army is providing medical aid and cellular coverage to civilians in Chungthang, Lachung and Lachen areas of north Sikkim, it said in a statement.
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Arasu reported from Bengaluru, India.
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