The Swiss village of Blatten was destroyed in mere seconds when a glacier collapsed above the village on May 28th, triggering a massive landslide. Although 300 residents had been evacuated a week prior, a 64-year-old man who is believed to have stayed behind remains missing.
Tess McClure, the Guardian’s commissioning editor for the Age of Extinction series, reported on the aftermath of the disaster. McClure described the Birch glacier, which sat above Blatten, as an ancient slab of ice. It had been loaded with rocks and debris from the mountain above and suddenly gave way, crumbling and sending millions of tonnes of rock, massive chunks of ice, mud, trees, and other debris crashing down onto the village.
McClure explained that it will take time for scientists to determine the role that the climate crisis played in the collapse, but highlighted how global heating is making similar events more frequent. She stated that climate change is affecting all the factors contributing to such disasters, including the rapid melting of glaciers worldwide. These glaciers are becoming increasingly unstable, and permafrost, which acts as a glue holding parts of the earth and mountains together, is also melting due to climate change.
McClure emphasized that while it is difficult to say with certainty that the Birch glacier collapse was solely caused by climate change, all the factors involved are linked to global heating.
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Source: https://www.theguardian.com/news/audio/2025/jun/06/the-swiss-village-buried-by-a-glacier-collapse-podcast
