The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM) has said that Tuesday’s devastating flood in the Lhende River of Rasuwa district was likely triggered by the outburst of a supraglacial lake located across the border in China.

Based on preliminary analysis of satellite imagery, the DHM stated that the flood may have resulted from the bursting of a supraglacial lake—formed atop a glacier—located approximately 36 kilometers north of the Nepal-China border at Rasuwagadhi (latitude 28.4043, longitude 85.6469), at an elevation of around 5,150 meters.

Before the incident, the lake spanned about 0.74 square kilometers. Post-flood analysis showed that its area had reduced to around 0.60 square kilometers, indicating a significant release of water that could have caused the flood downstream in the Lhende River, which is also known as Bhotekoshi.

Binod Parajuli, a flood expert at the DHM, said more information is expected from Chinese authorities and additional satellite images will help clarify the details. The department will continue to study the incident.

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) had earlier also suggested that the flood may have been caused by a glacier lake outburst .  (With inputs from RSS)