Uttarakhand avalanche LIVE: Toll climbs to 8 as Army recovers last missing worker's body
Number of avalanche-hit labourers revised from 55 to 54 as one of the "missing" labourers had left for home without telling his employers
Two days after a devastating avalanche hit BRO camp at Mana village in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district, Indian Army recovered the body of the last missing worker, news agency ANI quoted Army officials as saying on Sunday (March 2).
With this, the death toll in the avalanche has gone up to eight. The bodies recovered on Sunday are being brought to Mana post as per PRO (Defence), Dehradun.
Addressing the media, Lt Col Manish Shrivastava, PRO (Defence) Dehradun said, as quoted by ANI, “The last missing person's body has been found. All the 54 persons have been rescued/recovered. The recovery marks the culmination of Mana Village Rescue Operation.”
Earlier, the number of avalanche-hit labourers had been revised now from 55 to 54. According to the latest updates provided by the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA), one of the missing labourers — Sunil Kumar from Kangra in Himachal Pradesh — had gone home without telling his employers. He has reached home safely.
What is an avalanche and how does it happen? Read up all the details here
The avalanche hit the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) camp between Mana and Badrinath between 5.30 am and 6 am on Friday, burying 55 workers inside eight containers and a shed, according to the Army. Of them, 33 were rescued by Friday night and 17 on Saturday.
Located 3 km from Badrinath, Mana is the last village on the India-Tibet border at a height of 3,200 metres. Rain and snowfall hampered the rescue efforts on Friday and the operation was suspended as night fell. As the weather cleared up on Saturday morning, the Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel based in Mana resumed the rescue operation.
The deceased were identified as Mohindra Pal and Jitendra Singh from Himachal Pradesh, Manjit Yadav from Uttar Pradesh and Alok Yadav from Uttarakhand, the USDMA said.
Follow Live updates below:
Live Updates
- 28 Feb 2025 10:40 AM GMT
Amit Shah speaks to Uttarakhand CM
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has spoken to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and took stock of the trapped people under an avalanche, saying the government's priority is to safely evacuate all those who are out of reach.
"Spoke to Chief Minister Shri @pushkardhami ji, DG ITBP and DG NDRF regarding the glacier burst in Chamoli, Uttarakhand. Our priority is to safely evacuate the people trapped in the accident. The local administration is engaged in rescue operations with full readiness. Two teams of NDRF are also reaching the spot soon," Shah wrote on 'X' in Hindi.
- 28 Feb 2025 10:38 AM GMT
What Defence Minister Rajnath Singh says
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said all efforts were being taken to rescue the trapped personnel by utilising all available resources.
"An unfortunate avalanche has occurred in the Mana area of Joshimath (Uttarakhand) today impacting the GREF (general reserve engineering force) camp of BRO. Spoke to CM Shri @pushkardhami regarding the situation. The administration is providing all possible assistance to the affected," he said a post on X.
