India glacier disaster: Families join search for survivors

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This Feb. 7, 2021, satellite image released by Planet Labs, Inc., shows Uttarakhand, India, after part of a Himalayan glacier broke off. From the dust trail seen in the satellite images, top right, scientists deduced that a landslide and avalanche of were more likely the cause of the floods, rather than the initially suspected glacial lake burst, said Mohammad Farooq Azam, who studies glaciers at the Indian Institute of Technology at Indore and is working with a group of international experts to study the disaster. He said that the trial of dust was generated when the mass of rocks, boulders, ice and snow came crashing down a 2-kilometer (1.2 miles), near-vertical mountain slope on Sunday. What isn’t clear still is the sequence of events: Whether the landslide induced an avalanche of ice and debris, or whether falling ice resulted in the landslide. Now scientists are now trying to figure of it the heat produced during this crash because of friction was enough to have melted the snow and ice to result in the flood waters, he added. (Planet Labs, Inc. via AP)

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This photograph provided by Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) shows ITBP personnel use torches to gain access inside a tunnel to rescue more than three dozen power plant workers trapped inside it after part of a Himalayan glacier broke off Sunday and sent a wall of water and debris rushing down the mountain in Tapovan area of the northern state of Uttarakhand, India, Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2021. Hundreds of rescue workers were scouring muck-filled ravines and valleys in northern India on Tuesday looking for survivors after part of a Himalayan glacier broke off, unleashing a devastating flood that has left at least 31 people dead and 165 missing. (Indo Tibetan Border Police via AP)

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This photograph provided by National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) shows NDRF personnel search for more than three dozen power plant workers trapped in a tunnel after part of a Himalayan glacier broke off Sunday and sent a wall of water and debris rushing down the mountain in Tapovan area of the northern state of Uttarakhand, India, Monday, Feb.8, 2021. (National Disaster Response Force via AP)

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National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel clear debris after a portion of the Nanda Devi glacier snapped off Sunday morning, releasing water trapped behind it in Tapovan, northern state of Uttarakhand, India, Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2021. Hundreds of rescue workers were scouring muck-filled ravines and valleys in northern India on Tuesday looking for survivors after part of a Himalayan glacier broke off, unleashing a devastating flood that has left at least 31 people dead and 165 missing. (AP Photo)

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Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel using heavy machinery to clear debris as they try to rescue more than three dozen power plant workers trapped in a tunnel after part of a Himalayan glacier broke off Sunday and sent a wall of water and debris rushing down the mountain in Tapovan area of the northern state of Uttarakhand, India, Monday, Feb.8, 2021. (AP Photo/Rishabh R. Jain)

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This photograph provided by National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) shows NDRF personnel carry a dead body recovered from debris after a portion of the Nanda Devi glacier snapped off Sunday morning, releasing water trapped behind it in Reni, northern state of Uttarakhand, India, Tuesday, Feb.9, 2021. (National Disaster Response Force via AP)

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This combination of satellite images show Uttarakhand, India on Feb. 6, 2021, before a Himalayan glacier broke off, top, and on Feb. 7, 2021, after part of the western Himalayas in the Nanda Devi National Park snapped off Sunday morning. From the dust trail seen in the satellite images, top right on the bottom image, scientists deduced that a landslide and avalanche of were more likely the cause of the floods, rather than the initially suspected glacial lake burst, said Mohammad Farooq Azam, who studies glaciers at the Indian Institute of Technology at Indore and is working with a group of international experts to study the disaster. He said that the trial of dust was generated when the mass of rocks, boulders, ice and snow came crashing down a 2-kilometer (1.2 miles), near-vertical mountain slope on Sunday. What isn’t clear still is the sequence of events: Whether the landslide induced an avalanche of ice and debris, or whether falling ice resulted in the landslide. Now scientists are now trying to figure of it the heat produced during this crash because of friction was enough to have melted the snow and ice to result in the flood waters, he added. (Planet Labs, Inc. via AP)

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This Feb. 6, 2021 Satellite image released by Planet Labs, Inc., shows Uttarakhand, India, before part of a Himalayan glacier broke off. The disaster was set off when part of a glacier on Nanda Devi mountain snapped off Sunday morning. Scientists have gone to the site to investigate what caused the break and the flood — possibly an avalanche or a release of accumulated water. Experts say climate change may be to blame since warming temperatures are shrinking glaciers and making them unstable worldwide. (Planet Labs, Inc. via AP)

By RISHABH R. JAIN and SHEIKH SAALIQ

JOSHIMATH, India (AP) — As hundreds of rescue workers scoured muck-filled ravines and valleys on Tuesday looking for survivors after the sudden collapse of a Himalayan glacier, distraught relatives gathered at the disaster site to search for family members, almost resigned to the likelihood they were dead.

The disaster was set off when part of a glacier near Nanda Devi mountain broke off Sunday morning, unleashing a devastating flood that left at least 32 people dead and 165 missing.

Scientists are investigating what caused the glacier to break — possibly an avalanche or a release of accumulated water. Experts say climate change may be to blame since warming temperatures are shrinking glaciers and making them unstable worldwide.

The floodwater, mud and boulders roared down the mountain along the Alaknanda and Dhauliganga rivers, breaking dams, sweeping away bridges and forcing the evacuation of many villages while turning the countryside into what looked like an ash-colored moonscape.

It swept away a small hydroelectric project and damaged a bigger one downstream on the Dhauliganga. Flowing out of the Himalayan mountains, the two rivers meet before merging with the Ganges River.

One of the major rescue efforts is focused on a tunnel at a hydroelectric power plant where more than three dozen workers have been out of contact since the flood. Rescuers used excavators and shovels to clear sludge from the tunnel in an attempt to reach the workers as hopes for their survival faded.

In the distance, some families tried to identify their loved ones and grieved for the dead.

No one has been rescued from the tunnel since Sunday, with chances for a miracle declining with each passing moment. It could still take days or weeks before many bodies are found.

“There is nothing left here,” said Rani Devi, who wandered around the disaster site searching for her husband three days after the wall of water from the collapsed glacier barreled down the Alaknanda and swept away the hydroelectric power plant he was working at.

Devi, 48, traveled almost 700 kilometers (435 miles) from neighboring Himachal Pradesh state after hearing about the tragedy on TV news channels. On Tuesday, she walked through the reddish-brown mud, from one government official to another, hoping for any news about her husband. There was none.

“I don’t know how will I go back home. What will I even tell my family?” she said, holding back tears.

Most of the missing were people working on the two projects, part of many plants the government has been building on several rivers and their tributaries in the mountains of Uttarakhand state.

Rescuers said it was difficult to predict how long it would take to open the tunnel because of the heavy mud inside, but that they hoped to find people still alive.

“It’s a very big challenge, but we are trying our best and with full strength,” said Aditya Pratap Singh, deputy commandant of the National Disaster Response Force.

The power of the roaring wall of water was first noticed by residents of multiple villages perched on the valley slopes.

Rajeev Semwal heard a sound similar to rumbling clouds and then watched the usually blue waters of the Alaknanda turn muddy.

“I understood disaster had indeed struck,” said Semwal, a resident of Tapovan village in Uttarakhand state where the power plant is located.

Semwal’s brother-in-law and younger brother both worked at the power plant. His younger brother was inside the tunnel that was flooded and has not been heard from since.

Home Minister Amit Shah told Parliament that rescue efforts were on a “war footing.” He said there was no danger of flooding in low-lying areas of the region.

The ecologically sensitive Himalayan region is prone to flash floods and landslides.

More than 6,000 people are believed to have been killed in floods in 2013 which were triggered by the heaviest monsoon rains in decades.

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Saaliq reported from New Delhi.