Level-II emergency response activated after mudslide hits border port in Xizang

The National Commission for Disaster Prevention, Reduction, and Relief and the Ministry of Emergency Management have activated a Level-II national disaster relief emergency response, the second-highest in China's four-tier natural disaster relief system. This response is reserved for major and extremely serious disasters and was activated after a mudslide in Nepal caused casualties at the Gyirong border port in southwest China's Xizang autonomous region on Wednesday morning.

A mudslide caused significant casualties and left people missing at the Gyirong border port in Gyirong county, Shigatse, in Xizang, around 10:30 am on Wednesday. This prompted China to dispatch 574 rescue personnel, allocate 30,000 disaster relief supplies, and earmark 120 million yuan in central disaster relief funds for emergency response and rescue work.

Following the disaster, the Ministry of Emergency Management immediately coordinated rescue and relief efforts and sent a work team to the site to assist with the emergency response. The rescue forces include 249 personnel from the national comprehensive fire and rescue force and 325 engineering rescuers from China Anneng Group, PowerChina, and other units, who were dispatched with equipment. Specialized equipment, including emergency communication support systems and aeromagnetic detection devices, has also been sent to the disaster area to support on-site communications, search operations, and rescue work.

The Ministry of Natural Resources also activated a Level-II geological disaster prevention response at 3 pm on Wednesday and sent a work team to the site to guide rescue operations and help guard against secondary geological disasters. The ministry urged the Xizang regional natural resources department to immediately send an expert team to assist local authorities with search and rescue, emergency response, and technical support. It also called for increased inspections, monitoring, early warning, and prevention work against similar geological risks.

The China Geological Survey and the ministry's technical guidance center for geological disasters have been asked to strengthen expert coordination, consultation, and risk assessment to provide full technical support for front-line rescue work.

Together with the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, authorities allocated 30,000 central disaster relief supplies, including tents, heating stoves, clothing, quilts, folding beds, and moisture-proof mats, to support the relocation and resettlement of affected residents.

The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Emergency Management urgently pre-allocated 120 million yuan ($17.9 million) in central natural disaster relief funds to support Xizang in emergency rescue and relief work. The funds will be used mainly for search and rescue, relocation and resettlement of affected residents, risk removal, emergency response, and the repair of damaged homes to minimize disaster losses and casualties.

Weather conditions may add pressure to rescue work. From Wednesday evening to Sunday, most parts of Gyirong county are forecast to see light to moderate rain or thunderstorms, while some low-altitude townships in the south may experience heavy rain, local meteorological authorities said. Low-altitude areas of the county face a heightened risk of rain-triggered disasters, with mountain torrents, mudslides, and landslides possible in some places. Thunderstorms, gales, hail, and short-term heavy rainfall are also likely from afternoon to night in various areas, posing further disaster risks, local meteorological authorities said. The Xizang regional meteorological bureau has entered a special working mode and is updating weather forecasts every two hours to support front-line disaster relief operations.