Kathmandu: At least 3 Indian trekkers were killed and 4 others rescued as the death toll in one of the worst snowstorms to hit Nepal's Himalayan mountain range reached 30 on Thursday. After the rescue work resumed, two more bodies of Indian trekkers were recovered from Narkhu village in Manang district.
On Wednesday, one Indian was found dead in the area. The bodies of two Canadians and two Indians have been recovered from Manang district near Thorang Pas, said Gopal Babu Shrestha, Treasurer of Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN).
The official confirmed that the death toll from the snowstorm has now reached to 30 as five more dead bodies were recovered from Mustang district. Till Tuesday, a total of 21 dead bodies were recovered from these areas.
Meanwhile, four Indians among nearly 150 trekkers have been rescued by a team of TAAN so far. 77 people were rescued from North-West Nepal's Thorang La Pass in Manang district which include 17 Israelis, 29 Nepali supporting staff, five Indonesians, ten Germans, five Spanish, three Canadians, two Russians and two Polish.
Around 64 trekkers were rescued from Mustang district, the officials said. They were stranded in the region for the past three days as the worst-hit Manang and Mustang districts in the region were covered by three metre snow on Monday and Tuesday.
The incident occurred in Thorang Pass area which lies between border of Manang and Mustang districts at an altitude of 5,416 metres. The unexpected snow fall was the result of the cyclone that hit southern India last week.
Four helicopters have been mobilised for carrying rescue operations with the assistance of Nepal Army and Nepal Police officials as well as local trekking guides, Shrestha said. The sudden heavy snowfall in the area is attributed to Hudhud cyclone, that hit southern India recently. Heavy rainfalls accompanied by hailstorms lashed the central and western regions of Nepal for the past few days.
"This was the worst incident in the mountain region of Nepal involving foreigners in the recent past," said Shrestha. 21 people including nine Nepalese, three Polish, three Israelis and one Vietnamese were killed in Mustang district while nine people - six Canadians and three Indians - killed in Manang district so far.
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