China restores access to Tibet disaster zone as highway reopens
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Excavators and rescue equipment at the core disaster-hit area at Gyirong Port following the Aug 26 mudslide in Tibet, China.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- China has fully reopened the only road to the Gyirong border crossing, allowing heavy machinery to reach the Tibet disaster zone for the first time since sections were washed away.
- Rescue teams with life-detection devices and search dogs are working despite heavy rain, landslides, and difficult mountain terrain.
- Fatalities in Nepal exceed 1,114 with nearly 4,000 missing; Tibet reports 16 dead and 546 missing, including foreign tourists from India, Nepal and Latvia.
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BEIJING – China has fully reopened the only road leading to the Gyirong border crossing into Nepal, allowing heavy machinery to reach the core disaster zone for the first time since sections were washed away by catastrophic flooding a week ago.
The extensive damage to the G216 national highway meant that China had to airdrop equipment and supplies to front-line rescuers, some of whom trekked through the mountains to get to the site.
Large numbers of heavy machines have now reached the area where a Chinese border inspection complex once stood, along with equipment to reinforce search operations, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said.
Showing footage of rescue teams and excavators, CCTV said rescue crews equipped with life-detection devices and search dogs had been deployed.
Progress has been hampered by persistent rain and challenging terrain, as crews had to work in a narrow mountain gorge, hemmed in between unstable cliffs and a fast-flowing river.
The authorities, who have been monitoring upstream lakes that could cause more flooding if they burst, said those risks have diminished but landslides were still a concern.
In Nepal, the authorities said hopes of finding more survivors were fading. At least 1,114 people have been killed there and nearly 4,000 remain unaccounted for.
Across the border in Tibet, China’s official toll has held steady since Aug 30, with 16 reported dead and 546 people missing. That includes 104 Indians, 49 Nepali citizens as well as 33 Latvians who are believed to be part of two tourist groups.
Karlis Eihenbaums, Latvia’s Ambassador to China, said the country’s embassy was in contact with the Chinese foreign ministry and the authorities in Tibet for updates.
Embassy personnel have not sought to visit the Tibetan disaster site as information received from Nepal suggested the missing Latvians could have been swept away to the Nepali side, he said.
Much of the information about the disaster in Tibet has only been made available through specific sources, mainly China’s state-controlled media.
When asked on Sept 1 why the Chinese government had not allowed foreign journalists to visit the disaster zone, the Foreign Ministry cited loss of access to roads and communication in the area, as well as major safety risks from secondary disasters. REUTERS
