Three killed in IHK avalanche

SRINAGAR—At least three people were killed in an avalanche in Indian held Kashmir on Friday, taking the death toll due to heavy snowfall in the state to 15 in recent days, officials said. The avalanche hit a cluster of houses in the Gojerpati Gulabbagh area about 100 kilometres south of state capital Srinagar on Thursday evening. Military and civic agencies which had launched rescue operations said bodies of two men and one 12-year-old girl were recovered from the scene. “At least 32 villagers were rescued from the houses which came under the avalanche. Rescue operations would continue as we fear some more people could be trapped under the snow,” a senior official said. According to the state government, 12 people including one soldier had died in house collapses or avalanches across the region during the last four days. Heavy snowfall over the past week has paralyzed life in the state. The Srinagar valley was cut off as the main Jammu-Srinagar highway closed for the fifth day Friday. Hundreds of trucks carrying essential supplies to Srinagar were not able to move even as flights from the city were suspended. Many villages were inaccessible and without electricity.—Agencies