Nepal Blizzard/Avalanche-Death Toll Rises-Many Missing
Nepal Blizzard, Avalanche Death Toll Rises to 27, 85 Missing-So Far
-Officials Warn It Will Take Days to Dig Out Bodies from Deep Snow
AP/Daily Mail UK, 16 October 2014 KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Search teams in army helicopters rescued dozens of stranded foreign trekkers and recovered more bodies of victims of a blizzard and avalanches in the mountains of northern Nepal on Thursday, raising the death toll to 27, officials said. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...andout_pic.jpg Local people gather as a Nepalese army rescue helicopter lands to carry an injured trekker from the Thorung La mountain pass About 85 people were still missing along or near the popular Annapurna trail, said Ganga Sagar Pant of the Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal, and the death toll there was expected to rise. The route, 160 kilometers (100 miles) northwest of the capital, Katmandu, was filled with international hikers during the peak October trekking season, when the air is generally clear and cool. There were also many Nepalese on the trails because of local festivals. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...61_634x475.jpg In this photo provided by the Nepalese army, soldiers carry an avalanche victim before he is airlifted in Thorong La pass area, Nepal, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2014. An avalanche and blizzard in Nepal's mountainous north have killed at least 12 people, including eight foreign trekkers, officials said Wednesday. Five other climbers were hit by a separate avalanche on Mount Dhaulagiri and remain missing. (AP Photo/Nepalese Army) Government administrator Yama Bahadur Chokhyal said rescuers recovered 10 more bodies from the Thorong La pass area, where they had been caught in a sudden blizzard Tuesday. The bodies were not yet identified. Rescuers recovered the bodies of four other hikers — two Poles, an Israeli and a Nepalese — from the area on Wednesday. Chokhyal said 64 more foreign trekkers were rescued from the area on Thursday. Two trekkers from Hong Kong and 12 Israelis were airlifted Wednesday to Katmandu, where they were being treated at a hospital. They said they survived by taking refuge in a small tea shop along the path. "I was sure I was going to die on the way to the pass because I lost my group, I lost all the people I was with and I could not see anything," said Linor Kajan, an injured trekker from Israel, who said she was stuck in waist-deep snow. "One Nepalese guide who knows the way saw me and asked me to stay with him. And he dragged me, really dragged me to the tea shop. And everybody there was really frightened," she said. Another Israeli survivor, Yakov Megreli, said they tried to stay awake in the tea shop to stay warm. "We tried not to sleep. We tried not to get hypothermia. It was a very frightening and awful situation," he said. The blizzard, the tail end of a cyclone that hit the Indian coast a few days earlier, appeared to contribute to an avalanche Wednesday that killed at least eight people in Phu village in neighboring Manang district. The dead included one Indian and four Canadian trekkers as well as three villagers, said government official Devendra Lamichane. The villagers' bodies were recovered Wednesday, he said. The foreigners' bodies were buried in up to two meters (6½ feet) of snow and digging them out will take days, he said. Three Canadian trekkers who survived the avalanche were taken by helicopter to a shelter in a nearby village. No information was immediately available on their condition. Authorities said five climbers were killed in a separate avalanche about 75 kilometers (45 miles) to the west, at the base camp for Mount Dhaulagiri. The climbers, two Slovaks and three Nepali guides, were preparing to scale the 8,167-meter (26,800-foot) peak, the world's seventh tallest, said Gyanedra Shrestha of Nepal's mountaineering department. Their bodies were recovered Thursday. An avalanche in April just above the base camp on Mount Everest killed 16 Nepalese guides, the deadliest single disaster on the mountain. Climate experts say rising global temperatures have contributed to avalanches in the Himalayas. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...43_634x422.jpg From left to right, Israeli trekkers Linor Kajan, Yakov Megreli and Maya Ora attend the media at the Army hospital in Katmandu, Nepal, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. Nepal army rescuers in helicopters spotted eight more bodies of trekkers along a mountain trail that was buried in avalanches and blizzards, raising the death toll to 20, while five more climbers were missing on another mountain, officials said Thursday. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha) http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...94_634x399.jpg Nepalese trekking agent stands in front a patient¿s list at the Army hospital in Katmandu, Nepal, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. At least 14 foreign trekkers have been rescued so far, including two from Hong Kong and 12 Israelis who were being treated at the Military Hospital in Katmandu. October is the most popular trekking season in Nepal, with thousands of foreigners hiking in the Himalayan mountains. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha) http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...23_634x422.jpg A Nepalese army soldier takes a photo of a patient's list at the Army hospital in Katmandu, Nepal, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014. At least 14 foreign trekkers have been rescued so far, including two from Hong Kong and 12 Israelis who were being treated at the Military Hospital in Katmandu. October is the most popular trekking season in Nepal, with thousands of foreigners hiking in the Himalayan mountains. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha) As the weather improved, rescue workers recovered the bodies of four hikers - two Poles, an Israeli and a Nepali - from around Thorong La. Two trekkers from Hong Kong and 12 Israelis were airlifted Wednesday to Kathmandu, where they were being treated at Shree Birendra Hospital. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...andout_pic.jpg Tragedy: Soldiers carry the dead body of a trekker from the Thorung La mountain pass, which saw treacherous conditions this week http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...andout_pic.jpg Nepalese soldiers prepare the bodies of dead trekkers to be airlifted from the mountain http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...La_Thorung.jpg Rescuers recovered the bodies of the two Poles, one Israeli and one Nepali trekker from the Thorong La pass area (file picture) http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...La_Pass_54.jpg Thorong La Pass: At 17,769 feet it's the highest point on Annapurna circuit http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...e_from_Tho.jpg The stunning landscape at the Thorong La pass makes it popular with trekkers The blizzard, the tail end of a cyclone that hit the Indian coast a few days ago, appeared to contribute to an avalanche Wednesday that killed at least eight people in Phu village in the neighboring Manang district. The dead included one Indian and four Canadian trekkers as well as three villagers, said government official Devendra Lamichane. The villagers' bodies were recovered Wednesday, he said. But digging out the foreigners' bodies, which are buried in up to two metres (six feet) of snow, will take days, he said. Three Canadian trekkers who survived the avalanche were taken by helicopter to a shelter in a nearby village. No update was immediately available on their condition. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...48_636x358.jpg http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...andout_pic.jpg An injured climber is hoisted aboard a helicopter http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...al_map_jpg.jpg October is the most popular trekking season in Nepal, with thousands of visitors hiking around Nepal's Himalayan mountains http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/...ains_Free_.jpg The rain and snow in Nepal were caused by a cyclone that hit neighboring India several days ago Meanwhile, authorities said five climbers were killed in a separate avalanche some 75 kilometers (46 miles) to the west, at the base camp for Mount Dhaulagiri. The climbers, two Slovaks and three Nepali guides, were preparing to scale the 8,167-meter (26,800-foot) -high peak, the world's seventh tallest, said Gyanedra Shrestha of Nepal's mountaineering department. Their bodies were recovered Thursday. An avalanche in April just above the base camp on Mount Everest killed 16 Nepalese guides, the deadliest single disaster on the mountain. Climate experts say rising global temperatures have contributed to avalanches in the Himalayas. Quote:
24 Climbers Die in Nepalese Mountains due to Blizzard: |
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