NEW DELHI, Feb 8: All the seven army personnel who were struck by an avalanche at Kameng sector in Arunachal Pradesh on Sunday have been found dead. The army said on Tuesday that the bodies of the seven soldiers have been recovered.
The patrol party of the seven was struck by the avalanche in bad weather and amid snowfall in the high-altitude Kameng sector, the army said, adding a search and rescue operation was launched immediately.
Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of everyone involved, all seven have been confirmed dead, the army said in a statement. “The area, located at an altitude of 14,500 feet, had been witnessing inclement weather with heavy snowfall since the last few days. The bodies of the soldiers are currently being transferred from the avalanche site to the nearest army medical facility for further formalities,” the army said.
Soldiers routinely go on patrols in the higher reaches of Arunachal Pradesh and avalanches are a big risk during bad weather conditions.
(Manas Dasgupta)
