Solar panels, not sirens: how ‘perverse’ climate zealots killed thousands in Nepal

The article argues that the late-August avalanche and flooding in Nepal’s Trishuli Valley show the need for direct disaster preparedness, rather than more spending on emissions cuts. It says climate change may have contributed to the conditions, but cites research describing it as a factor alongside the region’s underlying geological risks.

The disaster left more than 1,400 people dead, 5,000 missing and an estimated recovery bill of nearly $5 billion; the article says some communities had at least 40 minutes to evacuate but received no warning. It contrasts a proposed $2.3 million system of monitoring, sirens and text alerts with climate-related aid it says went to other projects, including $6.7 million for solar panels and a $27.4 million river-basin programme that funded no flood alerts. It also notes that a separate $50 million warning-system project was approved in 2025, after the disaster, and is due to finish in 2033.