Avalanche in Uttarakhand; 41 BRO workers missing, 16 rescued, rescue operations delayed due to heavy snowfall

CHAMOLI: Rescue operations are underway to rescue 41 Border Roads Organization (BRO) workers trapped in an avalanche in Uttarakhand. A total of 57 workers were trapped and 16 have been rescued and sent to the army camp in a serious condition.

They were engaged in road construction. BRO Executive Engineer C R Meena told media that the rescue operations are being delayed due to heavy snowfall.
Around 60-65 people are involved in the rescue operations. Teams from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), district administration, and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) are on the spot.

57 road construction workers were stationed in the BRO camp at the time of the incident, informed Deepam Seth, Uttarakhand's Director General of Police, while speaking to NDTV.

‘The rescue operation has been underway for the last two hours. The main challenge is the bad weather. It has been snowing with strong winds...The roads are completely blocked. We have deployed snow cutters to open the road,’ said Deepam Seth, Uttarakhand's Director General of Police.

It is actively raining and snowing therefore, we are unable to deploy heli-services. Movement is difficult, the Chamoli District Magistrate Sandeep Tiwari said.