Swiss glacier collapses, destroys nearly all of Alpine village. Watch wild video
A huge mass of a Swiss glacier collapsed on Wednesday, leaving nearly all of an Alpine village destroyed. As rocks and chunks of ice crashed into the valley, plumes of dust went skyward. In a now-viral footage of the incident, the village of Blatten can be seen covered almost entirely in mud. Although residents had been evacuated days ago prior to the disaster, one person has been reported missing.
Clips and photos of the Swiss glacier collapse that have been making rounds on the internet show the mudslide near Blatten in Lötschental, the largest valley on the northern side of the Rhône valley in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. According to the local police, a 64-year-old man was reported missing following the disaster, per Associated Press. The authorities began rescue operations involving a drone and thermal camera.
Stephane Ganzer, the head of security in the southern Valais region, told local TV channel Canal9, 'About 90% of the village is covered or destroyed, so it's a major catastrophe that has happened here in Blatten,' adding, 'There's a risk that the situation could get worse.' In the wake of the incident, the regional government said that a large chunk of the Birch Glacier collapsed, causing the landslide in Blatten. A nearby Lonza River bed was also buried, which has raised the possibility of dammed water flows.
Blatten's mayor, Matthias Bellwald, addressed the disaster, saying that 'the unimaginable has happened.' 'We have lost our village, but not our heart. We will support each other and console each other. After a long night, it will be morning again.' On May 19, 300 inhabitants of the now-destroyed village were forced to evacuate after the geologists monitoring the area issued a warning about an impending disaster, as the glacier had become unstable, per BBC.
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Indian Express
a day ago
- Indian Express
Swiss village of Blatten buried by glacier collapse, raising climate concerns
The village of Blatten in southern Switzerland has been destroyed after a large section of mountain collapsed onto a glacier, sending rocks and ice crashing into the valley. Scientists had been monitoring the Nesthorn mountain above Blatten and had noticed signs of instability in recent weeks. Small slides of rocks and ice had already begun, prompting the evacuation of all 300 residents and their animals. Officials hoped the danger would pass slowly, but on Wednesday, a massive landslide hit the area. According to BBC, about nine million cubic metre of ice and rocks fell onto the Birch glacier and into the valley. The impact was strong enough to be recorded by geological monitoring stations across Switzerland. Blatten was completely buried. Its homes, church, and Hotel Edelweiss were all destroyed. Only the roof of the hotel is now visible above the debris. Breaking: A glacier collapse has buried the Swiss village of Blatten under mud. 💔 The Lonza River is dammed and large parts of the town have been evacuated. Tragic — but thanks to early warnings from scientists, lives were likely saved.#Switzerland #Blatten #ClimateCrisis… — The Curious Quill (@PleasingRj) May 29, 2025 In the nearby village of Kippel, residents Barbara and Otto Jaggi described the moment the disaster happened. 'There was loud banging, and the lights went out,' Barbara told. At first, they thought it was their chimney repairman, but soon he ran upstairs shouting, 'the mountain is coming.' Glacier expert Matthias Huss from the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich said the disaster was the worst-case scenario. 'I was speechless,' he told the BBC, adding that while Blatten is the most serious event in recent years, it is not the only one. 'We are seeing many,' he said. 'A lot of these events in the last years in the Alps are linked to global warming.' Experts believe melting permafrost is playing a key role. Permafrost helps keep mountains stable, but as temperatures rise, it thaws. When that happens, the ground weakens, and slopes begin to collapse. Glaciers are also shrinking, uncovering unstable rock faces. 'These changes used to take centuries,' Huss explained. 'Now they are happening in just a few decades.' Although the village had been evacuated in time and no major injuries were reported, one man aged 64 is missing. Authorities say the clean-up is on hold as the debris has blocked the River Lonza, creating a flood risk for other villages like Wiler and Kippel. Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter visited the area and met with people who had lost their homes. Local residents gathered for Ascension Day prayers in Wiler, expressing both grief and solidarity. 'They've lost everything,' one woman said. 'It's terrible. There's nothing we can do.' An elderly man added, 'We can cry, but we cannot cry forever. We must believe in God, that He will help us, so that life can go on.' Matthias Huss believes the Blatten disaster could shape how Switzerland thinks about living in mountain areas. 'This event will be decisive for how we perceive the mountains,' he said. 'And I wouldn't exclude that other villages might be destroyed in future.'
Time of India
2 days ago
- Time of India
Switzerland's glacier collapse: How a village vanished and what it means for the future
On May 28, 2025, the tranquil Swiss village of Blatten in the Lötschental Valley was dramatically transformed when a massive landslide, triggered by the collapse of the Birch Glacier, buried approximately 90% of the community under mud, ice, and rock. Fortunately, due to earlier warnings about visible cracks in the glacier, residents had been evacuated about ten days prior, preventing a greater tragedy. However, one 64-year-old man remains missing, and search efforts have been suspended due to hazardous conditions. The collapse not only devastated Blatten but also blocked the Lonza River, creating a natural dam and a new lake, raising concerns about potential downstream flooding in neighboring villages like Gampel and Steg. The Swiss army is on standby with heavy equipment to mitigate the situation, and authorities continue to enforce safety measures. Experts attribute the disaster to climate change, noting that rising temperatures have led to accelerated glacier melting and destabilization. Switzerland's glaciers have lost 10% of their volume over the past two years alone, with 6% lost in 2022 and 4% in 2023. This rapid loss is equivalent to the total depletion between 1960 and 1990. People have shared the horrific aftermath of the glacier collapse. The collapse of the Birch Glacier in Switzerland isn't just a one-off disaster — it's part of a much bigger, scarier trend: the thawing of long-frozen ice deposits all across the Alps. Glaciers aren't just giant piles of snow and ice sitting pretty in postcards. They're ancient, slow-moving rivers of ice that hold climate history, regulate ecosystems, and feed entire water systems. But right now, they're melting — and fast. Due to global warming, temperatures in alpine regions are rising at nearly double the global average. That means permafrost, the frozen ground beneath glaciers and rocky peaks, is starting to thaw. And when that happens, it's like pulling the pins out of a massive mountain Jenga game. The frozen 'glue' that holds rocks and ice together melts, making landslides, rockfalls, and ice collapses much more likely — just like what we saw in Blatten. Thawing also means water from glaciers is released too quickly, forming sudden lakes and unstable dams. These can burst, causing flash floods downstream. And if that wasn't enough, the melt also affects water supplies for millions across Europe who rely on glaciers to regulate rivers in summer. Scientists say that if current trends continue, Switzerland could lose many of its glaciers by the end of this century. The thaw is irreversible in many areas — once the ice is gone, it's gone. What's left behind are unstable landscapes, crumbling peaks, and a deeply altered climate future. This isn't just about losing pretty views; it's about losing stability, security, and balance in entire ecosystems. In short: thawing glaciers are nature's giant warning signs — and they're flashing red.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Time of India
Glacier collapse in Swiss village: Before-and-after images go viral
On Wednesday, dramatic footage of a catastrophic glacier collapse surfaced on social media that buried nearly 90 per cent of Blatten, a small Alpine village with a population of 300. Click to see the before-and-after pictures.
