SAMJUNG, Nepal (AP) — A Himalayan village in Nepal has vanished — emptied by climate change. Samjung, perched in the high-altitude Upper Mustang region, was once home to a few dozen yak herders and barley farmers. But its streams dried up and snowfall disappeared. Then, a sudden flood destroyed many homes. That was the last straw. The villagers relocated and named their new settlement “New Samjung.” Scientists say warming in the Himalayas is accelerating, melting glaciers and disrupting weather patterns. Some residents now grow apples or work in tourism, but many still long for the village they left behind forever as climate change transforms the mountains.
Read the full story by Aniruddha Ghosal and Niranjan Shrestha, Associated Press
Banner image: The abandoned village of Samjung, with ancient caves carved in the cliffs in the background, is seen in the Mustang region, 462 kilometers west of Kathmandu, Nepal, Friday, April 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)