China has warned there is a “high risk” that a lake which formed after the recent landslide near the Nepal-Tibet border may breach its banks, causing a second flood downstream.

The warning comes after Wednesday’s deadly flash flood in the same area which scientists say was triggered by the collapse of a mountain glacier into a river.

As of Friday, an estimated 2.5 million cubic metres of water had accumulated at the barrier lake, according to state broadcaster CCTV. A barrier lake is a body of water formed when debris dams up a river.

Officials said that three million cubic metres of water is expected to flow into the lake between Thursday and the weekend, posing a “high risk of breach”.

The area is also expected to see heavy rain in the coming days, according to state media.

The barrier lake, which formed at the confluence of the Chhochen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo rivers, had started to overflow on Thursday, according to China’s Ministry of Water Resources.