Authorities intensify monitoring for secondary hazards after mudslide in Xizang

Authorities in the Xizang autonomous region have intensified monitoring and early warning efforts against secondary disasters following the recent mudslide at Gyirong Port, deploying experts and specialized equipment to guard against further collapses, landslides and debris flows.

Karma Tsetan, chairman of the regional government and head of the emergency rescue headquarters, said 93 experts and technical personnel are monitoring the barrier lake and the source area of the ice-rock avalanche. Geological hazards along roads leading to the border port are also being investigated, while rainfall, temperature and water-level changes in key river basins are being closely monitored to protect rescue personnel downstream.

The barrier lake had discharged naturally by Aug 30, removing the immediate threat, while a small body of water formed by the ice-rock avalanche had also drained, Karma Tsetan said.

About 150 sets of specialized equipment have been deployed, including 104 sets of radar, video surveillance, drones, and hydrological and meteorological monitoring devices.

The Aug 26 disaster had left 21 people dead and 541 missing as of Wednesday noon.

Chen Fuqi, chief engineer of the regional Department of Natural Resources, said the area's steep terrain, complex geological conditions and high-altitude hazard sources make early detection difficult.

Authorities will integrate satellite remote sensing, drone surveys and ground monitoring, while strengthening geological hazard surveys, early warning, emergency coordination and cross-border information sharing, Chen said.