(TibetanReview.net, Oct16, 2018) – Even as dangers from a barrier lake formed by a landslide which blocked the Drichu (Chinese: Yangtze River) tributary of Jinsha River at Bolo Township of Jomda County in Tibet’s Chamdo (Qamdo) City receded following a burst through the blockade, another danger keeps growing, reported China’s official Xinhua news agency Oct 14.
The report cited China’s Ministry of Emergency Management as warning Oct 13 that the possibility of another landslide was growing. It was stated that a 300-metre-long crack had been spotted on the surface of the mountain where the previous landslide had occurred, increasing the risk of the river being cut off again.
In the case of the initial barrier lake which began forming after an Oct 11 morning landslide, water from the upper stream had burst through the blockade, causing the water level in the barrier lake to significantly drop and signalling eased pressure in lower reaches, the report said.
The river runs within the Tibetan region of Kham and demarcates the border between Tibet Autonomous Region and Sichuan Province.
The initial barrier lake had submerged two villages and led to the evacuation of more than 24,600 residents in 15 counties living within 300 kilometres (186 miles) downstream from the point of the blockage.
Meanwhile, some 7,000 tents, 30,000 cotton-padded coats, 50,000 quilts and 5,000 folding beds had been sent to the landslide-affected area to help residents, a Xinhua report Oct 15 cited China’s Ministry of Emergency Management as saying.
It also said the water level of the barrier lake had returned to normal, although the safety of the existing road could not be guaranteed, necessitating the emergency building of a new road spanning eight kilometres on a pasture to transport disaster relief supplies to the township.
