August 26, 20262 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAmA massive flood potentially caused by a chunk of ice breaking off from a glacier has swept away bridges, schools and other buildings and killed at least 160 peopleBy Andrea Thompson edited by Sarah Lewin FrasierHouses lie partially submerged in muddy water along a riverside after flash floods at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal's Nuwakot district on August 26, 2026. A massive flood swept through Nepal's northern Rasuwa district on August 26, damaging roads and power infrastructure as authorities scrambled to assess the scale of the destruction. (Photo by Prabin RANABHAT / AFP via Getty Images) Prabin RANABHAT /AFP/Getty ImagesJoin Our Community of Science Lovers!A huge flood thought to be triggered when a large chunk of ice broke off a high mountain glacier has swept through settlements in Nepal and the Chinese autonomous region of Tibet. The waters—seen on surveillance footage as people tried to run away—crashed through buildings and have killed at least 160 people with hundreds missing, including foreign tourists, according to officials in each country.Daniel Shugar, a geologist at the University of Calgary, found satellite imagery that appears to show a chunk of glacier about 2,000 feet wide that broke off and caused what is called an ice avalanche as it dropped almost 4,000 feet. “The bottom looks like a bomb exploded—it’s just deposits from the broken-up glacier,” he told the New York Times. The flow of the pulverized ice moved down a valley toward the Bhote Koshi River at the border between Nepal and Tibet.Houses lie partially submerged in muddy water along a riverside after flash floods at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal's Nuwakot district on August 26, 2026. A massive flood swept through Nepal's northern Rasuwa district on August 26, damaging roads and power infrastructure as authorities scrambled to assess the scale of the destruction. (Photo by Prabin RANABHAT / AFP via Getty Images)RANABHAT/AFP/Getty ImagesOn supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.A similar event happened in India in 2021, destroying a hydroelectric dam project and killing 42 people.The role of global warming in destabilizing the glacier still needs to be investigated, but glaciers in the Himalayas, as everywhere, have seen significant melt and retreat. This decrease is causing some glaciers to destabilize, along with cliffs they once buttressed. It is also causing sudden outbursts of glacial lakes. More than a third of the glacier ice in the region could disappear by the end of the century, according to some estimates, taking with it a crucial source of water for hundreds of millions of people.TOPSHOT - Rescue personnel use an excavator to carry a person affected by flash floods at Devghat in Nepal's Nuwakot district on August 26, 2026. Massive flooding killed eight people in Nepal on August 26, as Chinese state media reported "major casualties" from a mudslide at a Tibet trade hub on China's side of the nations' shared border. (Photo by Prakash MATHEMA / AFP via Getty Images)Prakash MATHEMA/AFP/Getty ImagesThere could be other contributing factors to the flooding as well, Shugar said, as overcast conditions have hampered satellite analysis.Nepal’s Army is carrying out search and rescue operations.This story will be updated as new information becomes available.It’s Time to Stand Up for ScienceIf you enjoyed this article, I’d like to ask for your support. Scientific American has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.If you subscribe to Scientific American, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can't-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world's best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you’ll support us in that mission.