Could the disaster have been prevented? VIDEO

HiRISK, a group of scientists that monitors risks in the high-mountain regions of Asia and provides guidance to policymakers, said there were “pre-event indicators” pointing to an impending avalanche, raising fresh questions about the effectiveness of disaster forecasting, Reuters reported.

The group assessed the early warning system for construction workers as “very weak”.

There was no warning system in the affected area for the risks posed by glacier collapse.

Experts met three months before disaster

Three months before last week’s devastating floods, experts from China and Nepal met in Kathmandu on May 27 to discuss disaster risks in the border region and coordinate ways to better monitor hazards and respond to events such as floods, Reuters reported.

The participants called for joint risk-reduction measures, including inventories of glacial lakes and mapping of high-risk areas. But two Nepali officials told Reuters they did not receive as much information as they had sought from China about the risks of glacier movement and water levels following the meeting.

United Nations Assistant Secretary-General Kani Wignaraja warned today that the Himalayan region faces serious risks of future glacier-related flooding.

He said the threat extends beyond the hydropower system on which many people depend, warning that entire riverbanks home to millions of people could become virtually uninhabitable, Reuters reported.