The 2025 Blatten disaster in the Swiss Alps followed exceptional warming and highlights the vulnerability of people and heritage in glaciated landscapes

Communications Earth & Environment, 8 December 2025. Ulf Büntgen, Clive Oppenheimer, Daniel Farinotti, Tim Nahtz, and Jan Esper. (Open Access.)

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Abstract

On 28 May 2025, twenty million tonnes of rock and ice buried the village of Blatten and nearby settlements in the Swiss Lötschen valley. In the wake of the warmest decade since at least 742 CE, the disaster underlines the potential impact of climate warming on people and heritage.

Published Dec. 8, 2025 9:52 AM - Last modified May 31, 2026 2:33 PM