Eighteen soldiers, including three officers, were struck by a snow slide in Sikkim on Thursday of whom 17 were rescued by the army and the search for the sole missing man is on, an army official said. The missing soldier is a middle-rung army officer. The incident occurred near Lugnak La, which is at a height of more than 5,000 metre, in north Sikkim.
“A snow clearance party came under sudden snow slide in north Sikkim. All soldiers have been evacuated safely but for one soldier who is still missing,” Intense search is underway to locate the missing soldier,” a spokesperson said. One of rescued soldiers, who was in a critical condition, succumbed to his injuries at the hospital, said a person familiar with the development late on Thursday.
North Sikkim was the site of a confrontation between Indian and Chinese troops on May 9. The face-off was at Naku La. Four Indian and seven Chinese soldiers were injured in the confrontation that involved around 150 soldiers.