Floods in Nepal and Tibet: ‘The disaster began with a landslide that swept a glacier along with it’

The U.S. Geological Survey on Wednesday reported a magnitude 5.2 glacier collapse that sent debris flowing downstream with catastrophic impact on communities.

A massive glacier collapse near the Nepal-Tibet border triggered a debris-filled flood that killed at least 180 people.

More than 1,300 people remain missing following the disaster, including foreigners and pilgrims, and hundreds have been displaced across the Himalayan region.

Preliminary reports in the immediate aftermath of Wednesday's disaster suggested a tremor may have caused a landslide that in turn triggered the flooding.