**519 People Still Missing 11 days After Tibet’s Jilong Port Destroyed by Mudslide**
After 11 days since the destruction caused by a mudslide at the Jilong Port in Tibet, 519 individuals still remain unaccounted for. Reuters reporters witnessed on September 6th, during a visit arranged by the Chinese government, approximately 60 Chinese rescue workers using excavators, shovels, and ground-penetrating radar to search through the rubble at the port.
According to on-site reports from Reuters, the valley where the Jilong Port is located has been covered with rubble, mud, and debris, with hardly any traces left of the once bustling border facility. The original five-story customs building and the nearly 20-meter-high national gate have disappeared, with the only recognizable remnants being a part of a nearby water tower. A Chinese national flag was planted on the former site of the gate, with warning signs nearby indicating “Danger Zone, Proceed Quickly.”
Rescue workers have been divided into three teams, using shovels for digging, while excavators and ground-penetrating radar are also involved in the search efforts. The search area has been divided into seven sections, with four of them reportedly already completed.
As of the official statement released by the Chinese government on September 6th, by 6 p.m. on the 5th, 43 people had been confirmed dead on the Tibetan side, with 519 individuals still missing, including 261 foreign nationals. Officially announced, two individuals have been rescued so far, although the specific locations of their rescues have not been disclosed. As of September 6th, CNN reported that no survivors had been found at the Jilong Port, and the list of missing persons had not been made public.
This marks the first time since the disaster that foreign journalists have been organized to enter the Jilong Port by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The reporters’ itineraries and access areas have been arranged by the authorities, as previously foreign media were unable to visit the disaster area in Tibet for coverage.
Reportedly by CNN, the road to the Jilong Port was only reopened on September 2nd, seven days after the disaster, allowing heavy machinery and a large number of rescue personnel to enter the area. Prior to the road being cleared, only a few rescue workers could access the disaster zone by foot over the mountains or through boats and aircraft. The site is still piled with a significant amount of mud and boulders, with unstable geology, facing risks like landslides and dam breaches.
Rescue workers mentioned that at present, they can only proceed by “digging one layer, searching one layer, and clearing one layer,” gradually searching for the victims. Continual rainfall and secondary disaster risks have resulted in the search operations slowing down or temporarily halting.
No survivors have yet been found at the Jilong Port. On the other side of the border, Nepalese rescue workers successfully rescued a Henan farmer named Lu Haitao from a 225-meter-long hydroelectric tunnel on September 5th. Lu had been trapped for 10 days and was rescued by a joint team of Nepalese military personnel and South Korean disaster relief experts. He was later airlifted to a hospital and is in stable condition.
During Lu’s period of disappearance, his family primarily searched for information through news reports, missing persons mutual aid groups, and social media. The day before his rescue, two Nepalese workers were also rescued from the hydroelectric tunnel; on September 5th, a Nepalese woman trapped in the rubble of a house also survived.
Nepal continues to release information about rescued individuals and rescue efforts, while victims and missing persons on the Tibetan side and their families are rarely mentioned in public reports.
Canadian Chinese writer and editor of “China Spring,” Sheng Xue, recently told Epoch Times that the Chinese government, in the face of major disasters, often first controls information and restricts external access. The delayed release of the list of missing persons, with some overseas families being left in the dark for an extended period, and foreign media not being granted access until 11 days after the disaster, raises concerns.
She believes that arranging for foreign journalists to witness the rescue scene cannot replace the early warning, evacuation, and search-and-rescue efforts during the initial phase of the disaster. While publicizing the number of personnel and equipment involved, the authorities have shown little willingness to let victims and families voice their concerns, displaying significant propaganda tendencies.
Commentator Shen Zhou recently wrote in Epoch Times that during the initial post-disaster period, the Nepalese army had been using helicopters for rescue operations, while the Chinese side initially used helicopters mainly for surveying and delivering supplies. Approximately three days after the disaster, the location where the road was cleared was still 1.7 kilometers away from the Jilong Port, with limited specialized rescue personnel entering the core area; heavy equipment could only enter after the road was cleared. He believes that this contrasts starkly with the high-profile propaganda by Chinese official media emphasizing leadership instructions and swift military and police assistance.