25 workers missing after avalanche hits BRO camp in Chamoli district; 32 rescued

DEHRADUN: A huge avalanche buried at least 25 construction workers under snow and rubble at a Border Roads Organization (BRO) site in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand on Friday morning, leaving them missing. According to Nand Kishore Joshi, the district disaster management officer for Chamoli, 32 of the 57 trapped workers have been freed, and attempts are underway to free the other 25.

According to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushar Singh Dhami, efforts to rescue the workers were delayed down by the unfavorable weather. Helicopters are unable to fly into the region, and visibility is poor. Rescue attempts are being hampered by the area's severe rain and snowfall, he said.

The avalanche happened close to a roadway in Mana village, which is about 4 kilometers from the Badrinath temple and the final town before the India-China border. According to officials, the laborers were hired to remove snow and debris from the 50-kilometer stretch between Mana Pass and Mana town.