Avalanche sweeps away tourists in northeast India; 7 killed

An avalanche has swept away a group of tourists in the Himalayas in northeastern India, killing at least seven and injuring 11

An avalanche swept away a group of tourists in the Himalayas in northeastern India on Tuesday, killing at least seven and injuring 11, officials said.

Rescuers were searching for at least 30 others, army spokesman Lt. Col Mahendra Rawat said in a statement.

India’s Border Roads Organization said the tourists were hit by the avalanche near the Nathu La mountain pass in Sikkim state. It said rescuers pulled 22 survivors from the snow and took them to a hospital for treatment.

Video footage released by the Indian army showed rescuers digging through the snow to find the missing who were swept away by the avalanche into a mountain slope.

Nathu La mountain pass is along the border with China and is a major tourist destination.

The ecologically sensitive Himalayan region, which has been severely affected by global warming, is prone to avalanches. Last year 27 trainee mountaineers were killed in an avalanche in the northern Uttarakhand region.