Four soldiers among six killed in Siachen avalanche

Tribune News Service

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New Delhi, November 18

Six persons, including four soldiers and two civilian porters, were killed after a team of Indian Army personnel patrolling the Siachen Glacier was struck by an avalanche in Ladakh on Monday.

A group of eight persons, including six soldiers from one of the battalions of the Dogra Regiment, were patrolling the area when the avalanche struck them at an altitude of 19,000 feet. The incident occurred around 3 pm in the northern part of the glacier.

A spokesperson for the northern command said avalanche rescue teams from nearby posts were rushed to the location for rescue work. All eight personnel were pulled out of the avalanche debris and taken to the nearest military hospital accompanied by medical teams. The four soldiers and two porters succumbed to extreme hypothermia, said Col Rajesh Kalia, Srinagar-based spokesperson for the Indian Army.

Siachen Glacier is the world’s highest battlefield and more soldiers have been killed in weather and terrain-related incidents in the area than in enemy firing.

India has deployed soldiers in its territory since 1984, after Pakistan tried to usurp the glacier by sending its soldiers and mountaineering expeditions in the area. In February 2016, 10 soldiers were killed in an avalanche.