Warning unheeded

THE flashfloods in Sikkim have wreaked havoc around Lhonak lake and the Teesta river basin, with several lives lost, many houses and roads washed away, bridges collapsed, parts of the Teesta dam damaged and communication snapped. Even as operations are in progress to restore normalcy and repair or rebuild damaged infrastructure, reports of the possible cause of this disaster suggest that there was a warning for the glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) that caused a flashflood in the Teesta river, which then gushed violently downstream. Had it been heeded, the damage could have been controlled.

A study published in ScienceDirect in 2021 had warned of a catastrophe in Sikkim, which is home to hundreds of glacial lakes that are prone to GLOFs. In view of this study, the satellite images released by the National Remote Sensing Centre of Hyderabad, depicting a reduction in the Lhonak lake’s size from 168 to 60 hectares since September 17, suggest that a lake outburst had happened and the water released from it would spill all around the area. Another view of scientists is that the floods could have been triggered by earthquakes in Nepal.

One of the disastrous consequences of global warming being increasingly felt is glacial melting, which, in turn, leads to cascading hazards. The Sikkim story seems to be one such case, with the primary event — whether GLOF, heavy rainfall or seismic activity, it is yet to be ascertained — leading to secondary hazards that together cause massive devastation. The 2013 Uttarakhand floods that occurred after the Chorabari lake breached its banks were one such distressing event. However, despite many experts and organisations monitoring and studying climate change, and also the technological advancements in weather forecasting in the country, it is unfortunate that preventive measures are not up to the mark.