China holds memorial services for flood victims in Tibet, 10 penalized over ‘misinformation’
Faisal Mahmud, Riyaz ul Khaliq
01 September 2026•Update: 01 September 2026
China held memorial services Tuesday for victims of last week’s deadly flash floods and mudslides in Tibet, while authorities announced legal action in 10 cases involving alleged online misinformation about the casualty figures from the disaster.
The memorial services were held Tuesday morning in Gyirong County in southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region, also known as Tibet, to mourn those killed in the Aug. 26 disaster, according to state-run Xinhua News Agency.
China has deployed some 700 personnel to restore access to the mudslide-hit Gyirong border crossing with Nepal.
“Road repairs continue, rescuers have spent four consecutive days searching a 0.7-square-kilometer area around the border gate using life detectors and other equipment,” said Norbu Tsering, deputy head of the emergency rescue headquarters and acting mayor of Xigaze City.
Separately, China’s cybersecurity police disclosed 10 cases involving what authorities described as online rumors related to the mudslide that devastated Gyirong Port along the border with Nepal, the state-run Global Times reported.
Authorities said legal action had been taken against people accused of fabricating information about the disaster, exaggerating casualty figures and misleading the public about the situation.
Police said the measures were aimed at preventing false information from disrupting ongoing search, rescue and relief operations.
The disaster struck on Aug. 26 after a glacier on Nepal’s Mount Langtang Lirung fractured at an altitude of about 5,200 meters (17,060 feet), triggering an ice-rock avalanche that developed into a massive debris flow and swept through valleys along the Nepal-China border.
Official data from both countries showed Tuesday that the combined death toll had risen to 1,019, including 1.003 fatalities in Nepal and 16 in China.
Some 4,462 people remained missing across the border, including 844 foreigners, as rescue teams continued searching areas devastated by the floods and mudslides.