J&K: Four Indian Army soldiers swept away in avalanches on Line of Control

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Four army men were killed in two separate incidents of avalanches near the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir, the Indian Army has confirmed.

An Indian army post in Tangdhar sector in Kashmir was hit by an avalanche on Tuesday in which three soldiers were killed.

In another incident, one army man was killed after a patrol party was caught in a blizzard in the Gurez sector on Tuesday.

The Indian Army said that despite the best efforts of the rescue and medical teams, four soldiers lost their lives.

The rescue teams managed to locate and retrieve the bodies of all personnel in both incidents, the Indian Army said.

On November 30, two Indian Army soldiers were killed when a snow avalanche hit them at Siachen Glacier in Leh district of Union Territory of Ladakh.

Defence spokesman in Srinagar Colonel Rajesh Kalia told News 24 that the slain soldiers were part of an Indian Army patrolling party that was operating at an altitude of approximately 18,000 feet in the southern part of the Siachen Glacier.

The defence spokesman said the army patrol was hit by an avalanche during early morning on Saturday.

The spokesman added that an Avalanche Rescue Team (ART) that was put into quick service immediately rushed to the spot and succeeded in locating and pulling out all members of the patrol.

He added that Indian Army helicopters were simultaneously pressed into service to evacuate the avalanche victims.

Avalanche hits Indian Army patrol in southern Siachen Glacier, 2 soldiers killed

The spokesman said two soldiers later succumbed to injuries at the Siachen medical facility.

Despite the best efforts by the medical teams, two Indian Army personnel, however, could not be saved, the officer added.

“An Avalanche Rescue Team (ART) following the Army patrol team immediately rushed to the spot and managed to locate and pull out all its members,” the Indian Army said in a statement.

“Simultaneously, Indian Army helicopters were pressed into service to evacuate the avalanche victims. However, despite the best efforts by the medical teams, two Indian Army personnel succumbed to their injuries,” the statement added.

Earlier, four soldiers and two civilians were killed on November 18 in an avalanche in northern Siachen.

The Siachen Glacier at the height of around 20,000 ft in the Karakoram range is known as the highest militarised zone in the world where the soldiers have to battle frostbite and high winds.

Avalanches and landslides are common at the glacier during winters with temperatures often dropping to as low as minus 60 degrees Celsius.