Bodies of 3 soldiers trapped in avalanches recovered
SRINAGAR: Three soldiers trapped in an avalanche in Jammu and Kashmir’s Batalik were found dead on Friday. Multiple avalanches tore through Batalik sector on Thursday as the Valley reeled under unprecedented rain and snow.
Two civilians are also missing after a vehicle they were travelling in skidded off the road and fell into a stream in Anantnag district. Five other passengers were rescued.
The administration declared floods in Srinagar where the Jhelum’s water level rose alarmingly and shut education institutions for three days, officials said. Kashmir experienced rare snowfall in April with vast areas blanketed in white due to the freak weather phenomenon.
An army spokesperson said the heavy snowfall triggered multiple avalanches, burying one post in the Batalik sector. Two out of five trapped soldiers missing were rescued on Thursday.
Specially trained and equipped avalanche rescue teams were deployed for the operations in the area. Incessant rains also led to the closure of the Jammu-Srinagar national highway.
SOLDIERS PUSH AMBULANCE TO SAVE PREGNANT WOMAN
NEW DELHI: Abdul Aahad Khan was uncertain if his wife would live that night. He was uncertain about the fate of his unborn child.
As Kashmir battled rain, avalanche and heavy snowfall, a couple was on its way from Bandipore to a hospital in Srinagar. But, at 1.30am, the ambulance they were travelling in broke down. However, the driver of the ambulance showed presence of mind and decided to let the sirens blare.
Soon, troops from a Rashtriya Rifles battalion rushed to the spot and found the woman in a critical state. They began pushing the ambulance to get it started.
The soldiers pushed the vehicle for more than 500 metres and asked the driver to take an alternative route to Srinagar.
Some 12 hours later, Khan called up the company commander of SK Bala Army camp to inform him that his wife had been saved and had delivered a healthy baby boy.