Before-And-After Photos Reveal Swiss Village Blatten Buried By Glacier Collapse
Just days after residents and their cattle were evacuated on May 19, the glacier above Blatten collapsed on May 28, following weeks of warnings. The disaster buried most of the Swiss village in the Lötschental valley.
Swiss glaciologists link the collapse to climate change, which has accelerated glacier melt. In 2023 alone, Switzerland lost 4% of its glacier volume, following a 6% loss in 2022.
A 64-year-old man remains missing, and search efforts using drones with thermal cameras are ongoing. Thankfully, no deaths have been confirmed.
Before the collapse, Blatten was a picturesque village with green pastures and alpine homes. Now, it’s largely buried under debris. “The unimaginable has happened,” said Mayor Matthias Bellwald. “We have lost our village, but not our heart.”
Experts believe the glacier collapse was caused by the thawing of permafrost, which destabilized the rocks. Similar climate-related incidents have increased, including the recent discovery of a 1968 plane crash site previously hidden by ice.
