Avalanche Kills 24 in Pakistan

31/12/2005| IslamWeb

At least 24 people were killed in an avalanche while hunting precious stones in a remote mountain range in northwest Pakistan.

The incident happened in the rugged Karakoram range in Kohistan district, local police chief Ashfaq Ahmed said.

"There were around 120 people extracting gemstones when the avalanche struck, burying a number of them," Ahmed said.

"Twenty-four were killed and the rest are fine. Locals have dug all the bodies out of the snow," Ahmed said.

He said a military helicopter had been despatched to the hard-to-reach area and had so far brought back 12 bodies to Dassu, the main town in the region, where they were handed over to relatives.

Police only learned of the avalanche late on Thursday, when residents of the far-flung village of Sputmali in the highlands arrived at their police post.

Kohistan is located in the region of Pakistan that was devastated by a massive earthquake in October, which killed more than 73,000 people. Since then, the mountainous area has been jolted by more than 1,500 aftershocks.

Ahmed said it was possible a tremor had triggered the avalanche.

The gemstones are one of the only ways of making a living in the rugged area, which is four days trek from Dassu.

The stones are sold through intermediaries to buyers in foreign countries.

"This is a good source of income for many people in the region where there is no industry and very little agriculture," local administrative official Niaz Mohammad said.

PHOTO CAPTION

This undated handout picture shows the world's second highest peak K2 standing at the Himalayan Karakoram range in northwest Pakistan. (AFP)