China said Monday it has notified the embassies of relevant countries in Beijing about procedures for collecting DNA samples from the families of foreign nationals still unaccounted for after a mudslide hit Gyirong Port in China's Xizang autonomous region.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun made the remarks at a regular news briefing in response to a question about search and rescue efforts for foreign nationals affected by the mudslide.

Guo said that if the bodies of foreign victims are found and identities confirmed, China will promptly inform the relevant countries' embassies of the arrangements for handling the aftermath.

He added that the Xizang autonomous region has opened a hotline for the families of missing foreign nationals to provide them with timely updates and assistance.

Shrinking and destabilized mountain glaciers are increasing the risk of disasters in high-altitude regions amid global warming, meteorological experts said.

The Aug 26 disaster at Gyirong Port in Xizang autonomous region was traced to an ice avalanche on the northern slope of Langtang Lirung, at an altitude of about 5,200 meters in Nepal, according to an investigation. The falling ice rapidly moved down a valley, generating a huge debris flow that struck the port.

Scientists say such events are becoming an increasingly important concern as global warming accelerates the melting and retreat of mountain glaciers.

The World Glacier Monitoring Service, which has conducted long-term monitoring of reference glaciers worldwide, has found that glacier mass loss has accelerated since the 1990s. From 2000 to 2023, mountain glaciers worldwide lost an average of about 273 billion metric tons of ice each year. The average annual loss rate from 2012 to 2023 was 36 percent higher than during 2000 to 2011.

The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau — one of the world's most sensitive regions to climate change — is warming particularly rapidly.

From 1961 to 2025, the plateau's average annual temperature increased by 0.35 C per decade, faster than the global average over the same period. Comparisons of China's three glacier inventories show that the total area of glaciers on the plateau shrank by about 24 percent over the past six decades.

Wang Pengling, a senior engineer at the National Climate Center, said the changes are altering the stability of the high-mountain environment and increasing the potential for cascading hazards.

"These changes can affect the stability of the cryosphere in various ways, increasing the risk of hazards such as ice avalanches, glacial lake outburst floods, and glacier-related debris flows," he said.

Rising temperatures are also degrading permafrost, which can weaken frozen ground and rock, further undermining the stability of mountain slopes.

According to the China Climate Bulletin 2026, from 2004 to 2025, temperatures at the upper boundary of permafrost rose by an average of 0.34 C per decade.

Monitoring at 15 meteorological stations in central and eastern Xizang also showed that the maximum freezing depth of seasonal frozen ground decreased by an average of 6 centimeters per decade from 1961 to 2025.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has warned that glacier melt and permafrost degradation can reduce the stability of high-mountain slopes and alter the frequency, magnitude, and extent of cryosphere-related hazards, increasing the risk of cascading disasters.

Experts say monitoring and early-warning systems therefore need to keep pace with the rapid changes in the mountain cryosphere.

"There is still no comprehensive early-warning system specifically designed for glacier-related hazards in high-mountain areas, leaving gaps across the monitoring and warning chain," Wang said.

A complete natural-disaster early-warning system involves four key elements: understanding and assessing disaster risks, dynamic monitoring, and forecasting, warning dissemination and communication, and emergency response.

He called for a coordinated ground-air-space observation network tailored to the complex terrain of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, with stronger dynamic monitoring of high-risk glaciers and glacial lakes.

He also recommended further research into the mechanisms behind cryosphere-related disasters and the development of comprehensive warning indicators to improve real-time alerts, risk assessments, and forecasts of future changes.

A glacier collapse that struck Nepal on Aug 26 and cascaded across the border into China has been identified as one of the most destructive extreme disaster events ever recorded in the Himalayan region, according to a scientific analysis released by the second Qinghai-Tibet Plateau scientific expedition and research team on Friday.

The glacier collapse originated from a 3.13-square-kilometer glacier in Nepal, whose downstream section shares a 22-km river boundary with China and drops roughly 3.5 km in elevation to the Gyirong border crossing. The ice body that detached measured about 980 meters wide and 780 meters long, covering 0.76 sq km, with an estimated volume exceeding 70 million cubic meters.

After breaking apart, the ice mass swept through the glacial valley, entraining both old and fresh moraine deposits as it surged downstream. The flow widened the river channel from 170 meters to 700 meters, and its direct impact extended over 80 km, the team found.

Seismic stations recorded a magnitude-5.2 earthquake triggered by the glacier's collapse and its cascading effects. The event began at 10:52 am, and the debris reached Gyirong Port just seven minutes later at 10:59, indicating a speed of nearly 190 km per hour. The team described the event as exhibiting "high-altitude initiation, low-altitude amplification, chain transmission, and instantaneous devastation".

The glacier collapse caused significant casualties and economic losses on both sides of the border, making it one of the most destructive extreme disaster events on record in the Himalayan region.

The team attributed the disaster to warming-driven ice crevasse expansion and accelerated meltwater drainage into the glacier's interior and bed. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is warming at roughly twice the global average, and, at extreme elevations, the rate reaches three times the global mean.

An automatic weather station 31 km from the avalanche site recorded average temperatures of around 7.4 C in the days preceding the event. Maximum temperatures exceeded 16 C, while minimum temperatures never dropped below zero. The persistent warmth accelerated surface melting and drove meltwater deeper into the glacier and down to its bed, strengthening the lubrication effect on the underlying bedrock.

Satellite imagery analysis from Aug 12 to 24 showed the ice body moving at around 0.4 meters per day — an order of magnitude faster than normal glacier motion — which the team identified as a critical precursor signaling enhanced bedrock lubrication and impending failure.

The Nepal's Chhochen Khola glacier collapse and its cascading effects represent new evidence that cryosphere disaster frequency and intensity are increasing under a warming climate, posing serious challenges to human settlements in high-mountain regions, the team said.

The team recommended prioritizing glacier collapse monitoring and database construction, conducting surveys of key indicators for high-risk glacier collapse hazards and their chain development and transmission pathways, and strengthening scientific assessment and regional coordination capacity to improve risk evaluation accuracy and emergency resilience.

The team noted that clarifying the mechanisms behind such events is critical not only for scientific understanding, but also for identifying high-risk glaciers near major engineering sites, key border crossings and densely populated areas, and for establishing effective cross-border monitoring and early warning systems.

Residents affected by the recent mudslide in Gyirong county, Xizang autonomous region, have begun returning to their villages to resume normal life and production, local authorities said.

So far, 444 residents evacuated from nearby villages in Gyirong town, have safely returned home as of Monday after the threat from a barrier lake was largely eliminated, according to a report from Xinhua News Agency.

The evacuation was prompted by a fast-moving chain mudslide triggered by a high-altitude glacier collapse in Nepal on Aug 26. The mudslide created a barrier lake above the Gyirong Port on the China-Nepal border, posing a serious threat to nearby villages.

For the safety of the surrounding villagers, local authorities relocated 499 residents from five villages in Gyirong town and Sale township to temporary shelters.

Among them is the family of Nyima Yangzom, a resident of Sichung in Sale town. Nyima Yangzom, who studies in Lhasa, confirmed via phone that her family had returned safely and were resuming their daily routines. "They are all safe and sound, and getting ready for the autumn harvest these days."

According to the latest reports from CCTV, Wang Chao, deputy director of the disaster relief department of the Ministry of Emergency Management, was quoted as saying that comprehensive inspections have confirmed the safety of residential structures in Sale township. The inspections, coordinated with the natural resources and housing construction departments, were conducted on a house-by-house basis to ensure the safety of the local population.

Wang assured the public that the risks of geological disasters had been deemed controllable, thus allowing residents to safely return to their homes.

To further mitigate potential risks, authorities have established seven geological disaster risk monitoring points around the village, Wang added. These points are staffed around the clock, with personnel conducting continuous monitoring and recording any changes in risk factors.

Looking forward, Wang emphasized the commitment to medium-and long-term monitoring plans. These plans will be based on ongoing assessments of geological conditions to ensure that the community remains safe and well-informed.

Significant advancements have been achieved in the diversion and transportation of personnel and goods stranded due to the mudslide disaster at Gyirong Port, Xizang autonomous region, Xizang Daily reported.

As of Monday, efforts have diverted 158 trucks carrying general merchandise and engineering materials, six trucks with agricultural products, 341 new energy vehicles, and 31 Nepalese box trucks to Rizi Port in Shigatse. All foreign tourists have exited the area, and 576 Nepalese border residents who were stranded at Gyirong have been processed through Zhangmu Port, it said. The remaining individuals are expected to be relocated shortly.

In the immediate aftermath of the disaster, the head of the region's department of commerce quickly arrived at Gyirong Port to oversee the implementation of an emergency response plan. This included the management of statistical data, resettlement, diversion, and transportation of inbound and outbound personnel and goods.

Under the guidance of the National Port Office, the regional department of commerce coordinated with relevant foreign affairs, customs, and border inspection authorities, as well as Shigatse's commerce bureau and the administrations of the Rizi and Nyalam ports, the report said. A dedicated task force was established to devise a comprehensive diversion and transportation strategy. This initiative includes a dynamic daily scheduling mechanism to ensure the safe, orderly, and efficient exit of stranded personnel and goods.

BEIJING -- China's National Climate Center has been providing Nepal with rolling climate monitoring and forecast products to support rescue and relief efforts following a severe mudslide at the Gyirong-Rasuwa border crossing, the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) said on Thursday.

Following the disaster, the center activated an emergency response and began providing climate services through a Nepal-customized cloud version of MAZU, China's homegrown artificial intelligence (AI)-powered meteorological early warning system.

It has also produced regular analyses of climate conditions in and around the disaster-hit area, along with extended-range forecasts looking several weeks ahead.

Under the CMA's coordination, the National Climate Center is providing Nepal with two main categories of products -- climate monitoring and climate forecasting.

For climate monitoring, the center produces five types of routine products covering conditions such as temperature, precipitation and soil drought. It also tracks 10 major climate indicators, including the El Nino-Southern Oscillation, or ENSO, and the Madden-Julian Oscillation, or MJO.

ENSO refers to a natural climate cycle that affects weather around the world. It includes the warm El Nino phase and the cold La Nina phase. Unlike ENSO, which is stationary, the MJO is an eastward-moving disturbance of clouds, rainfall, winds, and pressure that traverses the tropics and returns to its starting point in 30 to 60 days, on average.

For climate prediction, the center is using Fengshun, an AI climate forecasting model, to provide Nepal with daily temperature and precipitation forecasts for up to 60 days, as well as outlooks for climate phenomena including ENSO and the MJO.

The National Climate Center is also working with the Third Pole Regional Climate Center Network. Since Aug 28, it has been supplying Nepal with rolling climate outlooks for the coming 15 to 30 days in response to the country's needs, providing additional meteorological information for post-disaster rescue and relief work.

The meteorological support is part of broader China-Nepal cooperation following the Aug 26 disaster, which was triggered by a fractured glacier on Mount Langtang Lirung in Nepal at an elevation of around 5,200 meters. The glacier collapse generated an ice-rock avalanche that plunged rapidly to around 4,000 meters, scouring mountain slopes and developing into a massive debris flow.

The two sides held video weather consultations immediately after the event, according to the CMA. The administration has been providing Nepal with a range of meteorological products through MAZU, including multi-source satellite data and products from the Fengyun 3 and Fengyun 4 meteorological satellite series.

MAZU, which literally means "Sea Goddess" in China's Minnan culture, is the world's first national-level action plan in response to the United Nations' Early Warnings for All initiative. Since 2024, meteorological agencies in more than 40 countries have accessed MAZU through the cloud.

GYIRONG, Xizang -- A total of 444 residents evacuated from nearby villages in Gyirong town, Southwest China's Xizang autonomous region, have safely returned home after the threat from a barrier lake was largely eliminated.

The latest group to return consisted of 180 residents of Guoba village in Sale township, who departed for home at around 6 pm Monday. The 444 returnees come from one village in Gyirong town and three villages in Sale township. Another 55 residents from a separate village in Gyirong town are preparing to return.

The evacuation was prompted by a fast-moving chain mudslide triggered by a high-altitude glacier collapse in Nepal on Aug 26. The mudslide created a barrier lake above the core area of Gyirong Port on the China-Nepal border, posing a serious threat to nearby villages. Local authorities relocated 499 residents from five villages in Gyirong town and Sale township to a temporary shelter.

"We were well taken care of at the shelter, but I kept thinking about the livestock and crops back home," said Phurjung, a resident of Guoba village.

Over the past several days, experts have conducted ongoing safety inspections and hydrological monitoring. The barrier lake above the main area of Gyirong Port has been drained, the river has resumed normal flow, and the risk has been largely removed.

Local authorities checked the safety of houses and roads before arranging vehicles to transport residents home in batches. Upon returning to their villages, residents received food and other daily necessities delivered door to door by local officials.

During the evacuation, local officials and village workers helped care for livestock, poultry and crops, and regularly shared video updates of the villages with residents at the shelter.

At the core rescue site near Gyirong Port, China Daily noticed several personnel wearing "Psychological Support" armbands. He Lei, a member of the medical and epidemic prevention team of the Xizang Military Command and a psychological counselor, went to the frontline to monitor the well-being of rescuers. She also shared simple self-help techniques — "look, listen, smell and move", to help frontline personnel ease stress.

On the morning of Aug 26, a devastating mudslide originating in Nepal caused mass casualties and left hundreds missing at Gyirong Port in Shigatse, Xizang autonomous region. But why was the ice-rock avalanche that precipitated the mudslide so hard to predict? Why did Gyirong take such a massive hit? And what has made rescue efforts so challenging? In this video, we uncover the full picture by tracing the disaster from the source glacier over 100km downstream to Gyirong Port.

Chinese commercial satellites are stepping up monitoring of glaciers upstream from Gyirong Port in the Xizang autonomous region, looking for cracks and surface shifts that could signal further hazards as rescue operations continue following the Aug 26 mudslide.

Three Synthetic Aperture Radar, or SAR, satellites operated by Spacety, a commercial aerospace company based in Changsha, Hunan province, are providing updated imagery to the rescue command center in Gyirong county, Shigatse. The satellites have already been used to monitor two barrier lakes and assess damage to National Highway G216 in the disaster-hit area.

The latest focus is the glacier area upstream, where the team is using satellite imagery to track changes in the ice surface and identify potential risks, said Jiang Lin, a satellite engineer with the company who is working at the front-line rescue command center.

"If we spot a potential risk, the data will be provided to the rescue command center for further ground-based checks," Jiang said. "By combining satellite technology with ground information, we have built a multilayered monitoring system to provide timely and accurate information for rescue operations."

The team has also introduced Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar, or InSAR, technology to improve its ability to detect surface deformation. By comparing radar images of the same area taken at different times, the technology can detect ground movement at the millimeter-to-centimeter scale and cover large areas without requiring monitoring equipment to be installed on the ground.

SAR technology is particularly useful in Gyirong's mountainous terrain as it can operate at night and penetrate clouds and rain that may obstruct optical satellite observations.

"Think of SAR satellites as CT scanners for the Earth," Jiang said. "As the satellite moves along its orbit, it actively transmits microwave signals to create high-resolution images, even in heavy rain or at midnight."

Spacety joined the emergency response shortly after the mudslide hit the Gyirong Port area. Within 20 minutes of receiving a request for support, the team adjusted its satellite imaging plans to prioritize the affected area, Jiang said.

The first SAR images were obtained in the early hours of Aug 27. Jiang and his colleagues arrived at the rescue command center later that day to coordinate satellite observations with the needs of teams on the ground.

Satellite imagery obtained on Aug 27 and Aug 28 identified two barrier lakes, helping rescuers assess potential flooding risks downstream. In SAR images, water surfaces appear dark, while debris and damaged slopes appear brighter, allowing analysts to identify the lakes and assess their extent, Jiang said.

The satellites have also captured damaged sections of National Highway G216 near Gyirong Port, providing imagery of road-clearing routes and excavation work.

With three satellites passing over the affected area at different times and from different angles, the team can repeatedly update observations of key sites, providing rescuers with a more complete picture of changing conditions.

"By working here with the frontline rescue teams, we can understand their needs firsthand and respond as quickly as possible," Jiang said. "We aim to bridge the last mile between space technology and rescue operations."

Contact the writers at limuyun@chinadaily.com.cn

China on Monday said it had invited foreign journalists to visit the mudslide-hit areas of Gyirong in the Xizang autonomous region to learn about rescue efforts and reconstruction progress in response to the international media's close attention to reporting on the debris flow disaster.

The visit came after round-the-clock repair work had initially reopened the roads to the disaster zone, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a regular news briefing.

China had invited journalists from eight foreign media outlets, including NBC, CNN, Reuters, RT and the Press Trust of India, to enter the hardest-hit areas to learn about rescue and reconstruction progress, Mao said. They also attended a news conference held by the regional government, she added.

As reports from these journalists have been released, Mao said, "China will continue to make every effort to carry out search-and-rescue operations and handling of the aftermath, and release the latest information on the disaster and rescue operations in a timely manner."

After days of relentless search and rescue efforts, Xiao Fugui, a police officer at the entry-exit border inspection station in Gyirong county, Shigatse, Xizang autonomous region, looked gaunt and exhausted.

Despite his weary appearance, he repeatedly insisted that he was not at all tired. "All I want is to find my workmates," he said on Thursday, gripping an iron shovel with determination, his brow furrowed.

On Aug 26, a massive mudslide devastated Gyirong Port, a vital land link between China and Nepal. As of 6 pm on Saturday, 993 personal belongings had been recovered while 519 people remain unaccounted for.

Xiao was driving toward the port when the disaster struck. "I was just 4 or 5 kilometers away when I saw several cars pulled over," he said. "I got out and asked other drivers what was happening — everyone was panicked, saying the water level had risen sharply near the port."

Concerned for their safety, he instructed the two female colleagues in his car to get out and find a safe place, then continued driving alone to assess the situation. Upon realizing it was a mudslide, Xiao immediately alerted authorities.

"The muddy water was rushing toward me, so I threw the car into reverse and backed up about 500 meters before stopping," said Xiao in a tense voice. "I was terrified the car would be swept away. What really scared me was not knowing what had happened to my workmates at the port."

As visibility dropped sharply and the road ahead was blocked, Xiao found himself trapped. Reflecting on that moment, he said, "I really walked through the gates of hell that day."

Driven by worry and a deep sense of duty, Xiao joined the rescue teams. By Sunday, he had reached the vicinity of the port and immediately immersed himself in the relief efforts. "As soon as I arrived, I started moving supplies, then began searching. I found clothing, shoes and crushed vehicles belonging to the missing. Every single item I saw pierced my heart like a needle."

Originally from Qinghai province, 39-year-old Xiao has worked in Xizang for 17 years, with 11 of those years at the Gyirong entry-exit border inspection station, primarily handling publicity affairs. "For many years, I've spent almost every day with my workmates — filming their patrols, writing about their lives guarding this border," he said. "This port, these people — they've become part of me."

On the first day of the rescue, Xiao and other workers camped in a tent by a reservoir halfway up the mountain near the border port. He did not sleep at all. "The rain was so heavy that night — water poured down the slopes and merged into the river. The sound of rain, rushing water and collapsing hillsides all mixed together. It made my heart sink. I didn't dare to sleep, and I couldn't sleep anyway," he said.

As he spoke, he picked up the shovel and resumed digging. "I have only one thought: no matter what, I want to find my workmates. I want to bring them home," he added.

Contact the writers at caoyin@chinadaily.com.cn

As dawn broke in Gyirong county following another night of continuous rain on Saturday, He Lei, a psychological counselor, began another day of providing counseling services to search and rescue personnel working on the front line of the mudslide-stricken Gyirong Port in Shigatse, Xizang autonomous region.

"Through our work these days, we have found that our soldiers are quite resilient. They are focused on fulfilling their missions here and are fully aware of the significance of helping every family affected by the disaster," said He, a member of the medical and disease prevention team with the logistics support department of the People's Liberation Army Xizang Military Command.

As of Thursday, the PLA and the People's Armed Police Force had deployed 726 personnel to support rescue and relief operations following the mudslide, according to official data.

Li Guokai, head of the medical and disease prevention team, said the team is responsible for providing medical and psychological services to rescue workers and affected villagers during patrol visits, disinfecting key sites and monitoring health risks.

According to He, for those experiencing stress responses such as panic attacks or physical stiffness, the most important thing is to divert their attention from whatever is triggering the reaction.

"We have a method called 'look, listen, smell and move.' For instance, we will guide soldiers in need to identify three objects with specific characteristics in their surroundings, then listen for distinct sounds, identify several different smells and engage in a simple physical movement, such as stamping their feet," she said.

"This rapid redirection of attention helps alleviate immediate physiological stress responses," she said.

In addition to patrolling military bases involved in rescue operations on a daily basis, He also goes to the core area to provide on-site assistance when needed.

"As members of the military, we cannot shy away from difficult conditions," she said. "I wanted to be on the front line myself — to see if any soldiers needed support and to teach them techniques they can use on their own to manage stress."

Tan Xiangdong, Party chief of the Xizang autonomous regional health commission, said at a news conference on Wednesday that national and regional health authorities had organized three batches of psychological health experts, totaling more than 210.

Frontline rescuers have access to psychological risk assessments, group and individual counseling, as well as pocket guides designed to help them understand stress reactions and learn effective ways to cope, Tan said.

Contact the writers at wangxiaoyu@chinadaily.com.cn

For Hao Zhen, who was among a network of volunteers coordinating relief efforts in disaster-hit Gyirong county, rendering aid can come in many forms.

When a devastating mudslide struck Gyirong, a remote border area in the Xizang autonomous region, Hao did not hesitate.

While professional rescue teams searched the hardest-hit areas, Hao and his fellow volunteers worked behind the scenes to distribute supplies, meals and arrange accommodation for displaced residents and rescue workers.

The 27-year-old was among 17 volunteers from China's Go West program who joined relief efforts in Gyirong township after the Aug 26 disaster.

"When the disaster first happened, a lot of affected residents and rescuers arrived in the area all at once," Hao said. "The first thing we had to do was make sure they had somewhere to stay and food to eat."

As relief supplies poured in, the volunteers counted, sorted and moved thousands of boxes donated by a number of Red Cross organizations, companies and foundations. They also helped with logistics at the local emergency response headquarters and collected and organized information from the disaster area.

The experience gave Hao a new understanding of the mechanics of disaster relief efforts.

"Before this, I had only read news stories about volunteers helping after disasters," he said. "Now I realize that you don't have to be on the search-and-rescue front line to make a difference. Keeping things running behind the scenes matters, too."

Born in 1999, Hao was the oldest among the volunteers working in Gyirong who came from various parts of the country, including Heilongjiang, Jiangxi and Shandong provinces, as well as Xizang, and have backgrounds ranging from medicine to education.

The work brought practical challenges. Only two of the 17 volunteers spoke Tibetan, creating communication difficulties at shelters. Local township officials often stepped in to assist with interpretations.

Food and accommodation were also stretched in the first few days, as large numbers of residents, rescuers and support workers arrived in the small border town. Hao said the situation gradually improved as local authorities coordinated with hotels and restaurants to provide additional support.

Five other Go West program volunteers remained in the county seat, where they welcomed relatives of missing people, assisted families and handled calls and follow-ups through the 12345 public service hotline.

Volunteers from nearby counties, including Lhaze and Dingri, also arrived to help.

For Hao, Gyirong is a long way from home — nearly 5,700 kilometers from Shuangyashan in Heilongjiang. He usually makes the journey home once a year.

He arrived in Gyirong in February 2025 to join the Go West program and planned to stay for three years. His family initially tried to talk him out of the move, worried about the distance and the physical demands of living at high altitude.

"But I thought, if everyone worries about the hardship and the distance, places like this will have fewer and fewer young people willing to come," Hao said.

The physical challenges are real. When Hao first arrived in Gyirong, he found that he did not have the same stamina he had at lower elevations. He also experienced heart palpitations when he first joined the relief effort. After more than a year on the plateau, however, he said his body has largely adapted.

His family still worries about him, particularly after learning that he was involved in the disaster response.

"But the disaster happened right here, where we work and live," Hao said. "Since we chose to come here as volunteers, helping when something like this happens is simply part of what we should do."

The Aug 26 mudslide at Gyirong Port on the China-Nepal border was triggered by an ice-rock avalanche originating from a high-altitude glacier in Nepal.

As of 6 pm on Saturday, 43 people had been confirmed dead and 519 others remained missing, according to the local emergency response and rescue command headquarters.

For Hao, the experience has also changed the way he approached the small tasks that fill much of his day.

Moving boxes, arranging accommodation and making sure people have meals may be far removed from the dramatic scenes of a search-and-rescue operation, but he no longer sees them as minor jobs.

"My biggest hope now is that we can keep the support work running smoothly, that all the rescuers return safely and that there are no more secondary disasters," he said.

Contact the writers at luowangshu@chinadaily.com.cn

China has established communication and information-sharing mechanisms with the 23 home countries of the 261 foreign nationals who remain missing following the mudslide that struck Gyirong Port on the China-Nepal border.

Through the China-Nepal disaster information exchange mechanism, meteorological, hydrological, glacial lake and glacier data are being transmitted to Nepal daily, a senior official said on Sunday.

Ren Wei, executive deputy commander of the emergency rescue headquarters and executive vice-chairman of the Xizang autonomous region, said all relevant information had been promptly communicated to the respective embassies in China through diplomatic channels.

A 24-hour dedicated hotline for families of the missing foreign nationals has also been established and has received 509 calls as of Sunday. Each inquiry had been followed up on, with responses relayed to the next of kin, Ren said.

At the request of the Nepali side, the Chinese government dispatched tunnel rescue and DNA identification experts to Nepal, along with emergency relief supplies. The Xizang autonomous regional government also provided 320 metric tons of Bailey bridge components — designed for the rapid assembly of temporary bridges — and other relief supplies to Nepal.

Yang Lahong, deputy director of the Xizang foreign affairs office, said the region had carried out verification of information on the missing people in a rigorous, prudent and standardized manner.

The region released basic information on the missing people initially identified a day after the disaster. On Aug 30, it published additional details of the missing foreign nationals verified through joint investigations and rapid cross-checking by multiple departments.

While the breakdown by country and number of missing people was made public by authorities, the specific list and personal details have not been released due to privacy concerns. Instead, the information was communicated to the relevant embassies through diplomatic channels, with a collective briefing held on Tuesday, Yang said.

For safety reasons and to ensure efficient and orderly rescue work, no non-professionals were allowed to enter the affected core areas until conditions were fully prepared, she said.

To keep the public informed while ensuring safety, a small number of Chinese journalists were arranged to accompany rescue teams into the core areas despite the difficult terrain. Their reports and footage were subsequently released and widely used by domestic and international media, Yang said.

Regarding the families of the missing foreign nationals, the region expressed sympathy during these difficult times. In addition to providing regular authoritative updates and notifying families through diplomatic channels, authorities have kept the 24-hour hotline operating, with personnel diligently verifying information and providing feedback.

Currently, efforts are focused on rescue and recovery. After the search operation concludes, authorities will confirm and notify the status of deceased foreign nationals and assist their families with follow-up procedures.

For those who remain missing, assistance will be provided within China's legal framework, including arrangements for their families to visit Xizang, in coordination with relevant foreign diplomatic missions, she added.

Contact the writers at zoushuo@chinadaily.com.cn

Chinese experts have intensified monitoring of landslides, barrier lakes, glaciers and glacial lakes around the mudslide-hit area in Gyirong county, Xizang autonomous region, to guard against secondary disasters and ensure the safety of ongoing rescue operations.

The mudslide, which occurred on Aug 26, caused significant casualties and left many people missing in the region.

Su Pengcheng, a researcher at the Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said during a group interview with Chinese and foreign media in Gyirong on Sunday that experts from multiple government departments and research institutions had been mobilized soon after the disaster.

While rescue operations were underway, specialists began analyzing the causes of the disaster and assessing potential geological risks to provide safety support for frontline rescuers, Su said.

The road leading to the core rescue area was reopened in less than a week, while monitoring and risk assessment continued in parallel.

One priority has been closely tracking changes in a barrier lake formed after the disaster to prevent any sudden discharge from threatening downstream areas.

Authorities have also deployed professional monitoring equipment, including remote slope-deformation cameras, slope radars and satellite remote-sensing systems, to continuously assess the stability of slopes and residual deposits in the disaster-hit area.

Particular attention has been paid to potentially unstable material remaining on slopes near the affected valley, which could trigger further landslides or debris flows and pose risks to downstream rescue operations, Su said.

Experts have also conducted comprehensive geological hazard surveys around five villages in the affected river basin and along National Highway G216, a key emergency rescue route, to identify potential dangers and ensure the route remains safe.

Monitoring has extended beyond the core disaster area, with satellite and aerial remote sensing being used to track changes in surrounding glaciers and glacial lakes, which are widely distributed across the high-altitude region.

Su said the operation has brought together expertise from emergency management, natural resources, meteorology and water resources authorities, as well as research institutions, with a range of monitoring equipment deployed.

Experts are also using real-time images transmitted by drones to assess changing conditions. Their findings are promptly relayed to downstream teams, allowing search and rescue personnel to adjust operations when risks emerge.

Su said the coordinated monitoring system is intended to provide continuous early warning of possible secondary geological disasters while rescue work continues.

The recent debris flow that occurred on the Nepali side has underscored the urgent need for cross-border cooperation in disaster early warning, said Norbu Tsering, acting mayor of Shigatse, on Sunday.

Su Pengcheng, a researcher at the Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, said that source zones of ice-rock avalanches at high altitudes are extremely difficult to access because of cold temperatures, low oxygen levels and rugged terrain.

Cross-border river basins also have observational blind spots, while ground equipment can suffer from power and communication problems. Precursor signals are often subtle, and warning windows can be only a matter of minutes — far too short for traditional single-point monitoring to cover entire watersheds, he said.

Given that climate change is accelerating such rare but severe events, it is essential to conduct risk assessments of glacier instability, fill upstream monitoring gaps and introduce new geophysical detection technologies for full-chain dynamic monitoring, Su said.

He proposed developing a "space-air-ground" noncontact monitoring network to reduce dependence on on-site stations at extreme altitudes. A tiered approach — involving wide-area satellite scanning, targeted high-resolution monitoring and downstream alert systems — could provide valuable additional time for evacuation, he said.

Su also called for cross-border scientific collaboration and joint early-warning mechanisms. Since disasters do not respect borders, he called for data exchanges and shared risk assessments with Himalayan nations through existing international platforms. He also urged the creation of rapid notification channels to extend early warnings across entire upstream-downstream basins.

Norbu said the Xizang autonomous region has invested heavily in glacial-lake monitoring in recent years. A baseline survey using satellite imagery, fieldwork and glacier data identified more than 33,000 glacial lakes across the region.

Authorities have placed 187 high-risk lakes under satellite monitoring, with 49 of those also covered by ground sensors and drone surveillance, he said.

A multi-agency data-sharing platform now links meteorological, hydrological, natural resources and emergency departments. Expert panels regularly review glacial-lake risks, and a short-term early-warning system has been activated, along with evacuation drills for downstream communities during the flood season, he said.

China has established communication and information-sharing mechanisms with the affected countries as 261 foreign nationals from 23 countries remain missing following a recent mudslide at Gyirong Port on the China-Nepal border.

Through the China-Nepal disaster information exchange mechanism, meteorological, hydrological, glacial lake, and glacier data are transmitted daily to Nepal, a senior official stated on Sunday.

Ren Wei, the executive deputy commander of the emergency rescue headquarters and executive vice-chairman of the Xizang autonomous region, mentioned that all relevant information has been promptly communicated to the respective embassies in China through diplomatic channels.

A 24-hour dedicated hotline for families of the missing foreign nationals has been established, receiving 509 calls to date, with each inquiry followed up and responses relayed to the next of kin, Ren added.

At Nepal's request, the Chinese government has sent experts in tunnel rescue and DNA identification to Nepal, along with emergency material aid. Additionally, the local government of the Xizang autonomous region has provided 320 metric tons of Bailey bridge components and other relief supplies to Nepal.

Yang Lahong, deputy director of the foreign affairs office of the Xizang autonomous region, noted that the region has rigorously and prudently verified the personnel information of the missing individuals. The basic information of the missing persons was initially released the day after the disaster, and further details were published on Aug 30, verified through joint investigations and rapid cross-checking by multiple departments.

While the breakdown by country and number has been made public, specific lists and personal details have not been released due to privacy concerns; instead, this information has been communicated to the relevant embassies through diplomatic channels, with a collective briefing held on Sept 1, she said.

For safety reasons and to ensure efficient and orderly rescue work, non-professionals were not allowed into the affected core areas until conditions were fully prepared. To keep the public informed while ensuring safety, a small number of Chinese journalists accompanied rescue teams into the core areas, overcoming difficult terrain. Their reports and footage were subsequently released and widely used by domestic and international media, Yang said.

Regarding the families of the missing foreign nationals, the region expressed empathy, offering full understanding and care. In addition to regular authoritative updates and diplomatic notifications, a 24-hour hotline was set up and has received hundreds of calls, with staff diligently verifying and feeding back information.

Currently, efforts are focused on rescue and recovery. After the search operation concludes, authorities will confirm and notify the status of deceased foreign nationals and assist families with follow-up procedures. For those still missing, assistance will be provided within China's legal framework, including arrangements for families visiting Xizang, in coordination with relevant foreign diplomatic missions, she added.

Visiting the mudslide-hit area at Gyirong Port in Southwest China's Xizang autonomous region on Sunday, two foreign journalists were impressed by China's response to the disaster and urged the international community to work together in tackling climate change.

Reporters: Wang Xiaoyu, Palden Nyima and Shu Yiheng
Video editor: Song Yi
Editor: Liu Ming

GYIRONG, Xizang -- China has provided assistance to 1,720 Nepalese border residents after a mudslide struck Gyirong Port on the China-Nepal border in Southwest China's Xizang autonomous region on Aug 26, the emergency response and rescue headquarters said on Sunday.

The mudslide, triggered by a high-altitude glacier collapse in Nepal, had left 43 people dead and 519 others missing at the border port as of 6 pm Saturday, officials told a news conference.

Many Nepalese border residents who work or do business in the county of Gyirong were stranded there after the mudslide destroyed the border port, through which they enter and leave China.