Swiss Glacier Collapse Buries Alpine Village in Mud, Leaves One Missing

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A massive boulder and ice from the glacier thundered down the mountainside of the Swiss Alps last Wednesday, May 28. This landslide sent a cloud of dust skyward and covered almost an entire Alpine village with mud. The village's residents had been evacuated by the authorities earlier this month as a precautionary measure.

Videos on social media and Swiss TV showed the mudslide near Blatten, in the southern Ltschental valley. Houses and buildings were partially submerged under the brownish mud mass. Local police said a 64-year-old man was reported missing. Search and rescue operations involving drones with thermal cameras were ongoing.

"What I can tell you at the moment is that about 90 per cent of the village is covered or destroyed, so it's a major catastrophe that has happened here in Blatten," said Stephane Ganzer, head of security in the southern Valais region, to local TV channel Canal9.

Local government said in a statement that a massive chunk of the Birch Glacier above the village had broken off, causing the landslide that also buried the bed of the nearby Lonza River, thereby increasing the possibility of the water flow being dammed.

"There is a risk that the situation could worsen," said Ganzer, as reported by France 24.

He said the army had been mobilized after indications that the glacier movement was accelerating.

At a press conference, Swiss Environment Minister Albert Rösti lamented the event. He said the government would take steps to help the village residents who lost their homes.

In recent days, authorities have ordered the evacuation of about 300 people, as well as all livestock, from the village. The evacuation was carried out amid concerns that the 1.5 million cubic meter glacier was at risk of collapsing.

Climate change had severely affected Swiss glaciers, which melted as much in 2022-2023 as they had between 1960 and 1990. It lost nearly 10 percent of volume. 

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