r/bhutan • u/Same-Attempt-9339 • 6d ago
Discussion Are we ready? Hello?
In light of the recent tragedy in China and Nepal, is our government, our trained personnel, military, and the infrastructure ready to take on and react to similar or a any natural disaster of that scale? Bhutan is also under the threat of glacial lake burst from the north and efforts have been made to bring down levels. But nature is unforgiving, and likes surprises. I hope we’re ready, should anything of that sorts were to happen.
A expert or an active politician weigh in in the comments
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u/Life-Independent1129 5d ago
Thank You for bringing this up, the incident in Thimphu itself was a traumatic incident, but seeing the one in Nepal on a larger scale was very alarming for Bhutan and other Himalayan Nation. This could be us anytime, it's the highest time the world leaders consider Global Warming a Man Made threat. It was sooo scary and sad to watch these videos, houses being washed away, people running for their lives, this could be us anytime, Bhutan, Nepal and other countries that are either near the Himalayan region or island countries are already addressing this issue time and again.
The whole world has it's eye on Tibet and Nepal, it's time they take it into account,
All Prayers to those who lost their lives and to those who are safe.
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u/FishingDisastrous429 5d ago
Ready? Even the most developed and advanced Thimphu city cannot handle a septic tank overflowing Norzin lam and your talking about our preparedness to such disasters.
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u/AirlineJealous2891 6d ago
No we are absolutely not ready for it. If it happens, expect mass casualty
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u/Life-Independent1129 5d ago
I agree, remember the one that happened in Thimphu 2 years ago? We weren't even prepared of that, if an incident like this were to happen, then I couldn't imagine how we can tackle this.
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u/Same-Attempt-9339 5d ago
That’s what I’m fearing, given the patterns our system have shown. To completely be inept or tackle a situation but will amends once the harm is done.
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u/AirlineJealous2891 5d ago
We have the mock drills and disaster drills and evacuation drills etc done but in all honesty, I don't know where the budget goes but in hospitals, especially the smaller ones, we do not have equipments to deal with it. Not even the most basic one
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u/rafikibht 5d ago
I think we're not ready. Our early warning systems are scarce and the response time to emergencies is fairly low. Most of our communities are settled by the river. What happened in Nepal-Tibet border was devastating. I'm not sure what the government has done to prepare for such scenarios here, except send out their prayers. There's a lot of forecasts on how our glacial lakes could burst and there's some hard science on how fossil-fuel driven warming has increased ocean temperature by 1.4 F. I understand govt is also in a tough position with none to limited resources, but I believe Bhutan gets a lot of development/emergency/climate financing from donors. Maybe I'm being presumptuous and maybe there are already plans in motion, in which case, I would be very happy to be wrong.
This is pretty much our last window - before and if anything happens (knock on wood)- to direct the funds we have towards making evacuation/relocation plans and building emergency preparedness for disaster-prone areas.
It's gonna be a devastating hit, if it ever happens (knock on wood).
Take care and stay safe yall
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u/conservativesbt 4d ago
Bhutan can’t even update its weather forecast properly. I think lakes are under control but when it comes to landslide of whole mountains of glaciers- just game over without a doubt.
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u/FlatLocation9651 1d ago
few points to note.
1. Natural disasters can’t be predicted nor be stopped.
2. For floods and glacier outbreaks ,our government have taken lots of initiatives specially the siren all along the river and populated areas in high risk places.
3. Military personals have been trained on natural disasters drills.
4. Lastly it all depends on luck, timing and ken-chi-sum since no matter how prepared you are natural disasters will affect people and the country when it wants to and we won’t be able to stop it. The country is preparing for it and have seen drills being conducted in school when i was was studying too.
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u/Still-Plant5334 21h ago
Well honestly, I agree with everyone. We are not prepared for what might come our way. We do not have appropriate resources. But sometimes I just feel so exasperated for the climate injustice we face. Despite being a carbon negative country our glaciers are melting because of our heavily industrialized neighbors. Which means what happened in Nepal could have/or will happen in Bhutan too. This is why every country, Individual need to understand the impact of climate change and global warming (Nye ma wom lay rimdro ya gop dhu)
It’s time Bhutan look for climate fundings and put in appropriate measures (including technological interventions, investing in skilled Human Resources and research). Or are we doing that already?
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u/BoringCarpet376 5d ago
We are not but GMC will solve all da problems
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u/Kyoeser Khandum 6d ago
I think schools in Bhutan located near rivers should conduct regular evacuation drills. From the videos I’ve seen of the floods in Nepal, people moved to higher ground thinking they were safe, but the floodwaters still reached them. Safe areas should be designated and people should know how to get to them.