Deaths Reach 138 as More Rain, Snow is Forecast for Himalayas
May 07, 2011
SRINAGAR, India -- Hindu pilgrims stranded in the Himalayas carried their sick and dying relatives to safer areas Sunday as the death toll from a surprise snowstorm and torrential rains rose to 138, rescue officials said. Military rescue helicopters flew out of the towns of Srinagar and Pahalgam seeking to land on the pilgrimage route to deliver first-aid kits, medicine and blankets, and rescue some of those pinned down by the sudden weather change. About 7,500 people have been stranded since Thursday along the 30-mile route to the ancient cave shrine. Many were trying to descend the mountain but have been blocked by snow and rain. An official spokesman for the meteorological office in Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu-Kashmir state, said he expected the death toll to climb higher as more snow and rain were predicted Sunday. Heavy fog, rain and low clouds have hampered helicopter flights while rain and nearly 1.5 feet of snow have closed roads near the temple for Lord Shiva in the Amarnath cave, at an elevation of 13,500, about 90 miles northeast of Srinagar. Police officers involved in the rescue operation and speaking on condition of anonymity said 138 deaths had been recorded. But Ham Ciara, the official government spokesman, said he could confirm only 116 dead. The discrepancy is the result of delays in getting the most updated figures to the government, the police said. Most of the victims were from the plains and were not accustomed to cold temperatures, officials said. Thirteen people died of heart failures. About 80,000 people were in the mountains when the storm struck. They were trekking to the mountain cave to worship an ice idol of Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction.
