5 soldiers rescued after being trapped under snow in Macchil die

Five soldiers who were buried under snow on January 28 in Macchil sector in Jammu and Kashmir but were pulled out alive after a day-long effort succumbed to their injuries on Monday, the army said.

Five soldiers who were buried under snow on January 28 in Macchil sector in Jammu and Kashmir but were pulled out alive after a day-long effort succumbed to their injuries on Monday, the army said.

A view of the site of an avalanche that took place in Gurez sector of Jammu and Kashmir last week. (PTI Photo)

The soldiers were on Monday airlifted to Srinagar for specialist medical care but it was too late, taking the number of troops dead due to snow-related incidents in the border state to 20 in a week.

Inclement weather hampered the army’s efforts to evacuate the soldiers, who were trapped after a snow track caved in, to a hospital for specialised treatment.

“Extreme foggy conditions with intermittent snow exists in Kashmir Valley. Army aviation pilots are attempting to evacuate the five soldiers who were rescued in Macchil to Srinagar for specialised treatment,” a defence spokesman had said earlier in the day.

The state has received record snowfall, throwing normal life out of gear, disrupting road and rail links.

The remains of 14 soldiers who were killed in avalanches in Gurez sector on January 24 were brought to Srinagar on Monday after the weather cleared up.

The bodies would be taken to their native places on Tuesday for last rites.

With PTI inputs