Ten bodies were recovered and 384 persons have been rescued in the ongoing search and rescue efforts after an avalanche hit a Border Roads Organisation (BRO) detachment and labour camps north of Joshimath in Uttarakhand, an Army official said on Saturday.
Eight persons are still unaccounted for.
Around 4 p.m. on Friday, an avalanche hit a location about 4 km ahead of Sumna on Sumna–Rimkhim road in Uttarakhand, the official said. This is on the Joshimath–Malari–Girthidobla–Sumna–Rimkhim axis.
A BRO detachment and two labour camps are located nearby for road construction work along this axis and an Army camp is located 3 km from Sumna and about 1 km short of the BRO Sumna detachment.
“The area has experienced heavy rain and snow since the last five days, which is still continuing. Rescue operations were launched by the Army immediately,” the official said.
The road access has been cut off at 4 or 5 locations due to multiple land slides. Border Roads Task Force (BRTF) teams from Joshimath are working to clear slides enroute from Bhapkund to Sumna since Friday evening, the official added.
