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May 6, 2015

5/5/2015

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Here is a short BBC report on the devastation in Langtang, in the village of the same name, located in the upper Langtang Valley at around 4,000 meters.  It is unrecognizable. I have been there twice, and what was once a picturesque alpine village, rustic and beautiful, is now buried under meters of earth and rock, a huge avalanche that according to some sources was two to three kilometers wide. The village sits below the south face of Langtang Lirung and Lirung II, the former above 7200 meters in height.  There are a couple of glaciers, and mounds of un-compacted earth and rock, the moraines from earlier, more extensive glaciers that have retreated due to global warming.  Here is the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BEDRlFImD8


And a photo of the south face of the Lirung group:

Picture
And below the village of Kyanjin Gomba, or Upper Langtang. From what I can gather this village fared somewhat better than the main village, the latter being completely destroyed.
Picture
It is hard to believe, but it seems that the low rocky ridge immediately behind this village served to direct the avalanche to the viewer's left, away from this outpost and down, around 150 meters lower, to the main village of Langtang.
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    David Hammerbeck

    Writer, professor of literature and theatre, director, actor, traveler and bon vivant....


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