In a dramatic event captured on video, a deluge of water, mud, and rocks forcefully struck the village of Dharali in the Himalayas, causing buildings to be dislodged and homes to be buried up to their rooftops in an instant. The video footage, verified by CBC News, shows residents in Uttarakhand, India, attempting to escape as the torrent surged down from the mountains.
Approximately 360 million cubic meters of debris rushed into the village within seconds. As the week concluded, dozens of individuals remained missing, and authorities confirmed at least six fatalities. Investigations are ongoing to determine whether the calamity resulted from a cloudburst, a sudden intense rainfall in a localized area, or if it was triggered by a breach in a glacial lake.
Experts highlight the role of human-induced climate change in escalating the risk of such catastrophic events. Climate scientist Raghu Murtugudde described the incident in Dharali as “shocking and gut-wrenching,” emphasizing how climate change has made communities residing in high mountain regions more susceptible to disasters.
Situated over 350 kilometers northeast of New Delhi, Dharali rests at an altitude of 2,600 meters along the Bhagirathi River on the Himalayan slopes of Uttarakhand. Prior to the disaster, the village was home to fewer than 1,000 people and served as a tourist destination and stopover for Hindu pilgrims en route to Gangotri.
The disaster in Dharali has raised concerns about the risks posed by glacial lakes and the potential for outburst floods. Scientists point to the increasing volume of glacial lakes in the Indian Himalayas, with only a limited number under monitoring for high-risk indicators, leaving communities vulnerable to such calamities.
As the frequency and intensity of these disasters rise, experts stress the urgent need for global cooperation to address climate change and its repercussions. Despite local adaptation efforts, mitigating the effects of global warming requires a collaborative international approach to safeguard vulnerable regions like Dharali from future tragedies.