New Delhi/Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand): An avalanche struck Uttarkashi district in Uttarakhand on Tuesday, killing ten mountaineers, the police said. Eight persons were rescued and search was on for 11 others. According to reports, all the trainees were from the Nehru Mountaineering Institute. The helicopters have swung into action to join the rescue operation, state police chief Ashok Kumar said.
An avalanche struck Kedarnath two days ago and the mountaineers were warned against taking any risk. Nevertheless, it did not hit the Kedarnath Temple. According to preliminary reports, the avalanche hit the mountain at 16,000 feet from the sea level on Tuesday. An officer who joined the rescue operation said that the injured were being flown to Dehradun, the capital of Uttarakhand, for better treatment.
There were reports that 28 trainees of the Nehru Mountaineering Institute were trapped in the avalanche at Draupadi’s Danda-2 mountain peak. Immediately after getting information, the district administration, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Army AND Into-Tibetan Border Police personnel swung into action and began to do the rescue operation. Meanwhile, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh spoke to Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Pushkar Singh Dhami and assured him of all help.
