Major warning issued for tourist hotspot after glacier collapse
A huge mass of rock and ice has destroyed part of a popular village in the Swiss Alps that was evacuated earlier this month.
A video on social media showed the rumbling mudslide near Blatten, in the southern Lotschental valley of Switzerland, with several cabins partially submerged.
In recent days, the authorities had ordered the evacuation of about 300 people, as well as all livestock from the village, amid fears that a 1.5 million cubic metre glacier above the village was at risk of collapse.
Local authorities were deploying across the area to assess the damage and whether there had been any casualties, Jonas Jeitziner, a spokesman for the Lotschental crisis centre, said.
The retreat of the Alps' glaciers has been well documented.
More than 500 glaciers have already vanished from Switzerland, and the government has warned that the remaining 1,500 will be gone by the end of the century if emissions are not curbed.
It has led to so-called 'last chance' tourism, where visitors flock to see such natural wonders while they still can.
Yes, there has always been natural variation in the size of these frozen rivers.
But Switzerland's glaciers suffered their second-worst melt rate in 2023 after record 2022 losses, shrinking their overall volume by 10% in the last two years, monitoring body GLAMOS said last September.
The 'catastrophic' figures meant they lost as much ice in two years as in the three decades before 1990.
Late last year, scientists warned that a glacier known as 'the doomsday glacier', which has the potential to cause sea levels to rise across the planet, could be on the verge of collapse.
Researchers from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) used underwater robots to take new measurements of the Thwaites Glacier, which is the same size as Great Britain or Florida. More Trending
The data suggestsed that the glacier, along with much of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, could be lost entirely by the 23rd century.
Worryingly, if it collapses entirely, the experts say global sea levels would rise by two feet (65cm), plunging huge areas underwater.
In 2023, residents of the village of Brienz, in eastern Switzerland, were evacuated before a huge mass of rock slid down a mountainside, stopping just short of the settlement.
Brienz was evacuated again last year because of the threat of a further rockslide.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
MORE: Who is hosting Eurovision 2025? Everything you need to know about Michelle Hunziker
MORE: I've watched Eurovision for 45 years — here's my party survival guide
MORE: Eurovision star wants to break 30 year 'curse' that's doomed other singers
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Metro
2 hours ago
- Metro
Rhinos now have radioactive horns to fight off poachers
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Scientists are making rhino horns radioactive in a scheme to combat poachers. The initiative in South Africa, which involves injecting radioactive material into horns, will both enable them to be tracked and make the prized objects less desirable to poachers. Under the Rhisotope Project, rhinos are sedated during the procedure before a small amount of radioisotopes is inserted into a hole drilled into their horns. A pilot phase in June 2024 saw 20 rhinos successfully injected with the radioactive material, which will allow authorities to trace illegal trade with the use of existing nuclear security infrastructure. Making horns radioactive will also make them a liability to those who wish to smuggle them overseas, as the metal will set off detectors at ports and airports. James Larkin, Director of the Radiation and Health Physics Unit at the University of the Witwatersrand said that the process would make rhino horns unsuitable for sale globally. 'No one wants a radioactive horn', he said. Arrie Van Deventer, founder and director of the rhino orphanage, said that the scheme could be a 'holy grail' for the species. 'It is wonderful, I am telling you, this could be the holy grail to save the species', he said. Around 500 rhinos are killed for their horns each year in South Africa, home to 80 per cent of the world's population. A total of 105 were killed in the first quarter of 2025 alone, the ministry of forestry, fisheries and the environment said. Poachers sell horns to traffickers who in turn send them to lucrative overseas markets, including China and Vietnam. A typical rhino horn can be sold for more than its weight in gold at $60,000 per kilogram. The global rhino horn black market is now worth an estimated $20billion. More Trending The use of nuclear technology could also be used to help protect other endangered species, including elephants and pangolins. Rafael Mariano Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said: 'Radiation portal monitors were not initially envisioned as rhino savers. 'They are a cornerstone of nuclear security detection infrastructure… The Rhisotope Project means this technology will now also help combat illicit wildlife trafficking.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Cat named Leonardo da Pinchy terrorises town by stealing people's underwear MORE: You could have the cutest job in the world and become a duck-crossing warden MORE: Zoo kills 12 baboons because there wasn't enough space
Metro
a day ago
- Metro
New fear unlocked after 16-inch stick insect found deep in Australian jungle
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video To anyone with a phobia of insects reading this article, we're so, so sorry. Australian researchers deep in the country's wet tropics have identified a new species of stick insect – and it's absolutely huge. Not only is it about 16in (40cm) long, but it also has a wingspan comparable to a small bird's, and it weighs 150% more than the next-heaviest Australian insect. The new species, named the Acrophylla alta, was found in high-altitude trees in the wet tropics region of Queensland. Professor Angus Emmott from James Cook University, who helped identify the species, said the insect had probably remained undiscovered for so long because of its remote habitat. He told MailOnline: 'They live high up in the rainforest canopy, and accessing that is almost impossible. 'You've got to wait until, for instance, a bird knocks one down or you get a big storm and they get knocked down. It's very, very hard to find them in situ. 'Their body mass likely helps them survive the colder conditions, and that's why they've developed into this large insect over millions of years.' The females of the species, much bigger than the males, weigh around 44grams – much bigger than Australia's next-heaviest insect, the giant wood moth, which weighs in at about 30grams. But despite their large wingspan, Professor Emmott says they're 'not really great flyers' because of their 'heavy bodies' weighing them down. To be able to identify the species, the researchers' next step was finding a male – but because the males are so different to the females, they had been considered a different species of stick insect altogether. There was only one way to be sure the male and female were of the same species, and that was to catch them while mating. Professor Emmott explained: 'You really need to find the male copulating with the female. 'You know what it is then, and you collect the eggs and you can actually ascertain that they're one of the same thing. 'Every species of stick insect has their own distinct egg style. 'They've all got different surfaces and different textures and pitting, and they can be different shapes. Even the caps on them are all very unique.' So, not only did the researchers need to watch the insects have sex, they also needed to snoop on their eggs to make sure they definitely had a brand new species on their hands. A specimen of the Acrophylla alta is now part of Queensland Museum's collection – but it could be one 'untold' numbers of insect species which have gone undiscovered. 'Up here in the tropics, in northern Australia, we've got so many insects that are as yet undescribed,' Professor Emmott said. 'For instance, I've got an undescribed cicada in the garden here that a friend of mine is in the process of describing, and I've been working on the moths up here as quite a number of them are undescribed.' Trying to study the new species has its challenges, as stick insects by nature stay very still during the day to look like, well, sticks, to avoid being eaten by birds. More Trending Researchers end up trekking through the rainforest at night wearing head torches to stand the best chance of seeing them. Because of this, it's also not yet known how long the Acrophylla alta live for. Professor Emmott said: 'We don't actually don't know that yet, but I imagine only a couple of years maximum. 'Because, yes, there's a lot of pressure on them with birds looking for them and eating them all the time, and I guess that's why they're so cryptic.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: I spent four days on a train in the Australian outback — it was my idea of hell MORE: Virginie Giuffre's family ask what Trump really knew about Epstein after his 'stolen' comment MORE: This country will be underwater by 2050 — and people are entering a bleak competition to escape
Metro
3 days ago
- Metro
I've studied tsunamis for 25 years - here are the warning signs one is coming
One of the most powerful earthquakes ever recorded triggered huge tsunami waves across the Pacific Ocean. Some as high as four metres were observed after the 8.8-magnitude tremor struck off the city of Petropavlovsk, on Russia's remote Kamchatka Peninsula on Wednesday. Safety alerts have been downgraded but still remain in parts of Japan, the Pacific and over 3,000 miles (5,000 kilometres) away in Chile. Professor David Tappin, a marine geologist at the British Geological Survey, woke up to over 50 emails from global tsunami warning systems after the quake. The expert, who has studied tsunamis for over 25 years, explained to Metro how tsunamis form from the seabed and how they travel so far across the globe. Tsunami's are caused by large scale disturbances on the seafloor. Most commonly, and in the case of yesterday's tsunami warnings, it is earthquakes that trigger the massive waves. 'Earthquakes are the most hazardous tsunami mechanism,' Prof Tappin explained. Violent earthquakes occur due to a build-up of pressure between the tectonic plates that make up the Earth's crust. The crust 'plunges down into the mantle' Prof Tappin laid out what happened yesterday: 'Off Kamchatka, the Pacific plate is moving westwards towards Russia and it's plunging down into the mantle 'Due to the pressure, there was a massive movement yesterday evening that caused an earthquake.' The tsunami expert said that when the seabed moves during an earthquake, that same movement happens to the ocean above. So, for example, if the sea bed ruptured by 10 meters, then the waves generated on the sea surface would be 10 metres high. Prof Tappin said: 'The sea surface reflects that vertical movement of the sea bed. 'So during an earthquake, the sea surface collapses and that generates a tsunami.' One of the most infamous warning signs of a deadly tsunami is when the tide pulls away from the shoreline. Beachgoers may be tempted to investigate, or pick up dead fish, but in reality a massive tsunami wave could be just minutes away. But the tide does not always recede before the giant waves strike, as Prof Tappin explained. When the tectonic plates move, the seabed either moves up or down. When there is 'downward movement' that is when a 'trough' can be created in the sea. 'As the trough approaches the coastline, that's what causes the wave to recede,' Prof Tappin said. But the opposite can also happen, where the seabed moves upwards due to the build-up of pressure, triggering a 'positive wave'. This leads to an initial, particularly high, wave that hits the coastline. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video It took just hours for tsunami waves as high as 4 metres to strike Japan after the earthquake off Kamchatka. Yet tsunami waves then smashed into the coastlines of North and South America hours later, with many coastal communities told to stay cautious over the next 24 hours. However as these devastating waves travel over the ocean, they are hardly noticeable. Prof Tappin explains that is because the distance between each wave, called the wavelength, is actually hundreds of kilometres before they reach the coast. At this stage, the ocean is nearly two miles in depth and there is hardly any friction stopping the waves' movement. This lack of friction is why the tsunami that hit the US overnight were still powerful. The Galapagos Islands and parts of the US saw 4ft waves, as tall as those faced by many in Japan. Those waves, which appear 'benign' in the deep ocean, only become tall and frightening when it gets close to land. Prof Tappin said: 'When it approaches the opposite shore, the water depths approach and there is a frictional effects which leads to the build up of the tsunami. 'The wavelength reduces but the height of the wave increases.' The world's first tsunami warning system was set up in 1946 after a devastating disaster that year. Headquartered in Honolulu, Prof Tappin explained how it works: 'It is composed of around 100 seismometers, which measure earthquakes. 'They are working 24/7, and if there is an earthquake larger than magnitude seven, then the warning centre identifies this.' All eyes then turn to tide gauges, which measure the height of an ocean, based around the Pacific 'If there is an abnormality in the wave height after a magnitude seven quake then the warning bell rings. 'The center will then send out a warning to local organizations who are responsible for deciding when and how to evacuate people.' After the Kamchatka Peninsula earthquake, warnings or alerts about tsunami waves were issued in more than a dozen countries, including in Russia, Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, Mexico and California. More Trending The difference a warning system can make can be huge. The tsunami in Japan in 2011 saw 15 metre waves, but because of the pacific warning system only 18,000 people died. Whereas in the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 there was no warning system and 230,000 people lost their lives. After 2004 a warning system was also established for the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Tsunami warnings still in place after 8.8 magnitude Russian earthquake MORE: This country will be underwater by 2050 — and people are entering a bleak competition to escape MORE: Whales eerily become beached hours before earthquake – do they predict them?
