The Guardian Environment·4 min read

Climate crisis likely behind devastating Nepal-Tibet floods that killed more than 1,300, first study finds

D
Damien Gayle
Climate crisis likely behind devastating Nepal-Tibet floods that killed more than 1,300, first study finds
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Devighat Bazaar, a Nepalese town devastated by last month’s flash flooding. Photograph: Suryams Upreti/AAP Devighat Bazaar, a Nepalese town devastated by last month’s flash flooding. Photograph: Suryams Upreti/AAP Climate science Climate crisis likely behind devastating Nepal-Tibet floods that killed more than 1,300, first study finds Scientists say global heating was a destabilising factor in collapse of 200,000 sq metre glacier in August

Prefer the Guardian on Google Climate breakdown probably weakened the glacier that collapsed causing catastrophic floods and killing hundreds of people in Nepal and Tibet last month, the first scientific study of the disaster has found.

Researchers identified unusually warm conditions before the glacier’s collapse , which sent an avalanche of 110m cubic metres (3,885 cu ft) of snow and ice into the valley below. This triggered flash floods on an almost unprecedented scale, hitting communities downstream without warning.

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