The Bhutanese Leading the way.
Nepal’s catastrophe is not a tragedy to watch from a safe distance. It is a warning from the mountains.
On August 26, a glacier and rock collapse above the Nepal-Tibet border unleashed a devastating flood. Hundreds are dead and thousands are missing in Nepal and Tibet. The disaster destroyed roads, bridges, homes and the vital Kyirong border crossing. Bhutanese pilgrims had passed through the same route only days earlier.
The 5.2-magnitude seismic signal was generated by the landslide itself, according to the US Geological Survey, rather than by an earthquake triggering the collapse. The lesson for Bhutan is that Himalayan hazards can escalate with terrifying speed.
Bhutan is not a spectator to this risk. NCHM identifies 17 potentially dangerous glacial lakes, while recent research has identified dozens more glacial lakes with high or very high susceptibility to GLOFs. Many drain into valleys where people and infrastructure are concentrated.
The danger is closer than we think. The uncomfortable question is whether our warning systems are keeping pace with the changing threat.
Sensors and sirens are useful only if they work, communicate instantly and reach people who know what to do. Experience from Lunana shows that during past GLOF events, people often relied on phone calls and environmental sounds rather than formal warnings. In 2023, sensors at Thorthormi were destroyed by the flood itself.
This is where Bhutan must be brutally practical. Early warning cannot remain a project dependent on external funding. Communication redundancy, connectivity, maintenance, evacuation drills, safe settlements and continuous monitoring must become permanent national infrastructure.
The planned relocation of highly vulnerable communities should not wait for another catastrophe to make the case.
Nepal has paid an unbearable price for a disaster that unfolded in minutes. Bhutan still has the advantage Nepal’s victims did not which is time to prepare.
We should use it.
“We are on a highway to climate hell with our foot on the accelerator.” – António Guterres