Avalanche traps 42 workers under snow near India-Tibet border - 7 killed (UPDATE)

Al Jazeera
Fri, 28 Feb 2025 15:05 UTC

© State Disaster Response Force

Rescuers carry workers after an avalanche near Mana village in Chamoli district of India's Uttarakhand state on February 28, 2025

More than 40 construction workers are trapped under the snow due to an avalanche near India's border with Tibet.

Blizzard-like conditions caused the avalanche on Friday at a camp near the mountain village of Mana in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand.

It initially trapped 57 workers who were clearing out snow from the camp. Fifteen of them were rescued while 42 are still missing, said Ridhim Agarwal, an official from the state's disaster relief force.

Disaster response teams are trying to reach the trapped workers at the high-altitude camp, which had been under an avalanche warning since Thursday evening, according to Indian media reports.

However, the treacherous weather is hampering their efforts, said Deepam Seth, the state's top police officer.

"It has been snowing with strong winds. ... The roads are completely blocked. We have deployed snow cutters to open the road," he told Indian broadcaster NDTV.

"Additional troops and equipment are being staged forward to the location," the Indian army's Central Command announced.

Comment: Update March 2

The Statesman reports:

The death toll in the Uttarakhand avalanche disaster has risen to seven after rescue teams recovered three more bodies of Border Roads Organisation (BRO) workers on Sunday.

The victims were buried under a mass of glacier and snow near Mana village, ahead of the Badrinath shrine. One worker remains missing.

According to the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Department, the three recovered bodies belonged to BRO workers trapped under the avalanche at Mana.

"The death toll of BRO workers in the Mana avalanche has reached seven, as three more bodies were discovered by rescue teams on Sunday. The deceased workers were from Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Himachal Pradesh," said Vinod Suman, Secretary, State Disaster Management.

The bodies of all seven victims have been sent for post-mortem to Joshimath, and arrangements will be made to transport them to their respective hometowns.