Seven tourists killed as avalanche hits road from Gangtok to Nathu La

The incident occurred near Milestone 15, short of Nathu La and close to the Tsomgo Lake, a popular tourist spot in East Sikkim. While at least 13 tourists were rescued by afternoon, the joint search and rescue operation, by the Army’s Trishakti Corps, state disaster management teams and the police, was called off at 5.30 pm as it started snowing again, triggering fears of fresh snowslides.

The injured have been sent to a nearby Army facility and another local hospital for treatment; some of them have already been discharged.

It is not immediately clear if anyone has been reported missing. Gangtok Superintendent of Police Tenzing Loden Lepcha told The Indian Express that by Tuesday evening all the persons who had been reported missing had been accounted for.

“We have issued a helpline number so that anyone who knows of any person to be missing in the avalanche can reach us,” he said. “We have also reached out to other stakeholders, including hotels, travel agents and cab drivers, to contact us if they are aware of any tourist who could be missing,” he said.

Nathu La, situated at 14,450 feet above sea level, is one of the open trading border posts between India and China. A PTI report quoted a police officer as saying that the tourists were not permitted to travel beyond Milestone 13 due to inclement weather, but they forced the tour operators and the drivers to take them to the area where the incident happened.

Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang condoled the deaths, and said that he was praying for the speedy recovery of those injured. “My heart goes out to the bereaved family and friends in this hour of grief and I pray that the departed souls rest in eternal peace,” Tamang said.

“My sincerest condolences to the families of those who have lost their lives in the tragic avalanche in Sikkim. We are closely monitoring the situation and the teams of NDRF will reach the affected area soon. I pray for the speedy recovery of those injured,” tweeted Home Minister Amit Shah.

“Saddened by the loss of precious lives due to an avalanche in East Sikkim. Search and Rescue Ops are being carried out by the Indian Army, SDRF and other agencies. My deepest condolences to the bereaved families. Praying for the speedy recovery of the injured,” tweeted Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.

The Siachen glacier as well as several border posts in the mountainous terrains of J&K and the Northeast are prone to frequent avalanches.

In May 2020, two Army personnel were killed in north Sikkim after a 17-member patrolling-cum-snow clearance party came under an avalanche. In February last year, seven Army personnel were killed during a patrol in Arunachal Pradesh after they were hit by an avalanche. —With PTI inputs