Eom Hong-gil, Who Visited the Himalayas Two Months Ago: "I Can See the Glaciers Gradually Shrinking"

Voices of Concern Over "Global Warming"

Proposal for a Supervisory Body to Manage Glacial Lakes

As the number of deaths and missing persons continues to rise due to the massive floods in Nepal, voices of concern are emerging from the mountaineering community regarding "global warming." This is because there are suggestions that the recent flooding may have been caused by melting glaciers.

Eom Hong-gil, Executive Director of the Eom Hong-gil Human Foundation and mountaineer. Photo by Younghan Heo younghan@

Mountaineer Eom Hong-gil stated in an interview with the Dong-A Ilbo on August 27, "Every time I visit Nepal, I realize that human-induced global warming is increasing the risks," adding, "An unspeakably huge disaster has occurred, but I am worried that incidents like this will become more frequent in the future."

He went on to explain, "As the weather gets warmer, glaciers across the Himalayas are melting. These melting glaciers are blocked by soil and debris, which creates glacial lakes. Then, when an event such as an earthquake or landslide causes just one dam to burst, as we have just witnessed, it leads to an unspeakable disaster."

Eom stressed the need to establish an emergency response body to supervise and manage glacial lakes. He stated, "When glaciers melt, unimaginable disasters like this one can happen at any time. We must constantly monitor the situation and prepare for worst-case scenarios because we never know when or how a breach could occur."

Having explored the Himalayas since the 1980s, Eom noted that the quality of the glaciers has changed compared to the past. He said, "When I first came, the glaciers were large and solid, with no gaps. But as the years have gone by, I have seen the glaciers gradually shrinking. Recently, soil, rocks, and debris have mixed into the ice, making it harder for the glaciers to freeze quickly."

Eom also visited the area where the recent accident occurred just two months ago. He said, "When I visited, it seemed that just a few days earlier, a surge of water had rushed down from the valley. Road construction was underway in several places, and concrete retaining walls were being installed around the valley."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.