A massive landslide has destroyed the power station of the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation’s (NHPC) Teesta Stage 5 dam in Sikkim on Tuesday morning.
The hill next to the 510 MW power station had been at risk for weeks due to ongoing minor landslides. On Tuesday, a large section of the hill gave way, covering the power station in debris.
Thankfully, there were no injuries or casualties, as the station had been evacuated days earlier due to the frequent landslides. Videos recorded by workers near the site show a portion of the cliff shifting before a massive chunk crashes onto the power station, with onlookers screaming in the background.
The Teesta Stage 5 dam has been out of operation since October 2023 when the Lhonak glacial lake burst after a cloudburst in Sikkim.
This cloudburst triggered a severe flash flood that damaged parts of the Teesta Dam at Chungthang, Sikkim’s largest hydropower project. Videos from the event showed large sections of the dam wall missing as the Teesta River surged through the gaps in North Sikkim’s Mangan district.