Avalanche kills 135 in Pakistani army camp

PAKISTAN: Up to 135 people, mostly soldiers, were feared dead yesterday after an avalanche buried a Pakistani army camp in Kashmir, in an area known as the world’s highest battleground.

The avalanche early on Saturday engulfed the camp near the Siachen glacier, an inhospitable area that nevertheless became the site of fierce fighting between nuclear-armed rivals Pakistan and India.

No survivors have been found after a day-long search involving more than 150 soldiers, sniffer dogs and helicopters through the avalanche that covered an area of one square kilometre.

The Pakistani army said that up to 135 people, including 124 soldiers and 11 civilians, ‘‘came under a huge snow slide’’ early in the morning in mountainous Gayari district.

A colonel, major, captain and four junior officers were among those missing under the snow, the army said.

A tailor and two hairdressers were among civilians buried as the avalanche hit the militarised region, which is close to the de facto border with India in the Muslim-majority Kashmir region, over which India and Pakistan have fought two wars.

Siachen became a flashpoint when India occupied key areas in 1984, including the heights, prompting Pakistan to immediately respond by deploying its own forces.

India and Pakistan fought a fierce battle over Siachen in 1987, raising fears of all-out conflict, although the guns on the glacier have largely fallen silent since a peace process was launched in 2004.

Army spokesman Major General Athar Abbas said that contrary to local media reports, no bodies or survivors had been found.

Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani expressed his deep shock at the avalanche, but insisted that the disaster ‘‘in no way would undermine the high morale of soldiers and officers’’.

Heavy machinery to help rescue efforts has been transported to the far-flung and inhospitable area.

A team of doctors and paramedics was rushed to the region after the avalanche.