In Blatten, a Swiss village, residents were warned of a dangerous glacier, which ultimately collapsed, sending 3 million cubic meters of ice and debris cascading down. The event was equivalent to a 3.1-magnitude earthquake and buried approximately 90% of the village, which had been evacuated prior to the disaster. Mayor Matthias Bellwald expressed the community's loss and appealed for assistance in rebuilding. One person remains missing after the incident, and the collapse is suspected to have been triggered by recent snowmelt at higher altitudes.
"We have lost our village," Blatten Mayor Matthias Bellwald said during an emotional news conference Wednesday evening. He said the destruction was extensive and appealed for help to rebuild the village.
The glacier's collapse was so explosive that it corresponded to a 3.1-magnitude earthquake on Switzerland's scale, according to the country's Seismological Service.
Authorities suspect the collapse was triggered by high-altitude snowmelt, leading to a catastrophic failure of the glacier and the burials of the village.
The cascade of rubble buried about 90 percent of the village, which was evacuated days before due to warnings about the unstable glacier.
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